NORWAY:ITS  PEOPLE.ITS  FJORDS 
AND  ITS  FJELDS 


!   «   ' 


IN  VIKING  LAND 

NORWAY:  ITS  PEOPLES,  ITS  FJORDS  AND  ITS  FJELDS 


Works  of 
W.  S.  MONROE 


Turkey  and  the  Turks   -     -     $3.00 
In  Viking  Land  -     -     -     -       3.00 


L.  C.  PAGE  &  COMPANY 

New  England  Building,   Boston,  Mass. 


HAAKON    VII.,    KING    OF    NORWAY. 


IN  VIKING 
LAND 


NORWAY:    ITS  PEOPLES,   ITS   FJOKDS 
AND   ITS   FJELDS 


BY/ 

W.  S.  MONROE 

AUTHOR  OP  "  TURKEY  AND  THE  TURKS,"  ETC. 


ILLUSTRATED 


BOSTON      * 
AND  COMPANY 


L.  C.  PAGE 
MDCCCCVIII 


Copyright,  1908 
Br  L.  C.  PAGE  &  COM  PANT 

(INCORPORATED) 


All  rights  reserved 


First  Impression,  September,  1U08 
Second  Impression,  June,   1910 


Electrotyped  and  Printed  at 
THE    COLONIAL    PRESS: 

C.  H .  Simonds  (&  Co., Boston, 


DEDICATED  TO 

of  i»p  ffiot&er 


PREFACE 


THE  present  work  is  the  result  of  two  vaca- 
tion trips  to  Norway  and  rather  wide  reading 
of  the  extensive  literature  of  the  country. 
The  author's  aim  has  been  to  give  prospective 
tourists  some  notion  of  the  benefits  to  be  de- 
rived from  a  visit  to  Norway  and  to  inform 
readers  who  prefer  (or  are  forced  by  circum- 
stances) to  travel  within  the  covers  of  a  book. 
He  trusts,  also,  that  his  book  may  serve  to  re- 
fresh the  memories  of  those  who  have  already 
travelled  in  Norway. 

In  a  country  so  rich  in  mountains,  ice-fields, 
waterfalls,  and  fjords,  it  is  altogether  easy  to 
devote  the  chief  part  of  the  book  to  physio- 
graphic forms  and  forces.  This  is  precisely 
what  most  writers  on  Norway  have  done.  The 
present  volume,  on  the  other  hand,  gives  prom- 
inence to  matters  of  human  interest  —  the  peo- 
ple, their  habits,  customs,  and  traditions,  and 

vii 


viii  Preface 

to  the  developed  and  developing  civilization  of 
the  country.  Important  as  the  Sogne,  the  Har- 
danger,  and  the  North  Cape  may  be  as  geo- 
graphic types  and  marvels  of  scenery,  Edvard 
Grieg,  Bjornson,  and  the  institutions  of  the 
country  are  likewise  significant  features  of  the 
land,  and  they  should  receive  due  consideration 
in  a  popular  work  of  this  sort. 

The  geography  of  the  country  is  given  in 
the  first  chapter.  The  chief  structural  features 
of  the  land  —  plateaus,  coast-islands,  fjords, 
glaciers,  f jelds,  and  climate  —  are  briefly 
sketched.  Most  of  these  topics  are  given  more 
detailed  treatment  elsewhere  in  the  book,  the 
opening  chapter  serving  merely  the  purpose  of 
orientation. 

The  viking  age  appeals  strikingly  to  the 
imagination  of  readers  and  travellers,  and  the 
author  has  endeavoured  to  draw  from  the 
chronicles  of  the  old  Norse  sagas  and  the  ex- 
isting historic  objects  that  have  a  visible  con- 
nection with  the  past  such  facts  as  may  aid  in 
the  construction  of  a  fairly  vivid  picture  of 
this  stirring  period. 

The  civilization  of  Norway  can  only  be  inter- 
preted through  such  significant  historic  facts 
as  the  long  period  of  independence  under  na- 


Preface  ix 

tive  earls  and  kings  and  the  unhappy  alliances 
with  Denmark  and  Sweden;  hence,  two  his- 
torical chapters  have  been  added.  Readers 
who  object  to  history  in  tabloid-form  are  re- 
quested to  skip  these  chapters.  Those,  how- 
ever, who  are  not  familiar  with  the  trend  of 
events  in  Norway  are  likely  to  find  them  help- 
ful. 

While  the  recent  rupture  with  Sweden  and 
the  formation  of  an  independent  kingdom  is 
fresh  in  the  minds  of  most  students  of  current 
history,  a  hasty  review  of  these  events  is 
given,  with  a  brief  account  of  the  young  king 
whom  the  Norwegians  have  selected  as  their 
sovereign,  together  with  the  methods  of  operat- 
ing this  very  democratic  monarchy. 

The  people  of  Norway,  their  ethnic  stock, 
physical  and  mental  characteristics,  moral 
traits,  and  personal  qualities,  are  discussed  in 
the  sixth  chapter;  and  the  Lapps  of  the  polar 
regions  in  the  seventh.  The  ancient  and  mod- 
ern Norse  religions  are  described  in  the  eighth 
chapter;  and  the  author  has  not  assumed  on 
the  part  of  his  readers  very  general  acquaint- 
ance with  that  branch  of  Scandinavian  mythol- 
ogy which  formed  the  basis  of  the  religion  of 
Norway  before  the  introduction  of  Christian- 


x  Preface 

ity.  In  the  tenth  chapter  an  account  is  given 
of  public  education  —  elementary  and  second- 
ary schools,  the  university,  technical  and  spe- 
cial schools,  libraries,  and  literary  publications. 

Methods  of  travel  in  Norway  differ  in  so 
many  particulars  from  the  other  countries  of 
Europe  that  a  chapter  has  been  devoted  to  the 
subject.  The  life  on  the  lonely  and  solitary 
farms  is  treated  in  the  eleventh  chapter,  and 
the  fisheries,  forests,  and  commerce  in  the 
twelfth. 

Norway  is  probably  best  known  in  foreign 
countries  by  the  grand  fjords  which  indent  her 
western  coast.  The  author  has  described  the 
most  magnificent  fjords  from  the  Har danger 
to  the  Trondhjem  in  the  thirteenth  chapter. 
The  fjelds  (mountains)  and  the  deep  and  pic- 
turesque mountain  valleys  of  the  southern  and 
central  highlands  are  treated  in  the  fourteenth 
chapter. 

The  three  cities  of  the  country  first  in  point 
of  historic  interest  —  Trondhjem,  Bergen,  and 
Christiania  —  are  separately  described ;  and 
three  chapters  are  devoted  to  the  flowers  of 
Norwegian  civilization  —  literature,  music, 
painting,  architecture,  and  sculpture.  The 
large  place  which  Norway  occupies  in  the  cur- 


Preface  xi 

rent  history  of  the  fine  arts  will  come  as  a 
surprise  to  most  readers. 

A  select  annotated  bibliography  will  be 
found  in  the  appendix.  For  the  use  of  these 
books  the  author  is  indebted  to  that  excellent 
literary  workshop  —  the  City  Library  at 
Springfield,  Massachusetts.  In  the  spelling  of 
the  names  of  places  and  persons  preference 
has  been  given  to  accepted  Norwegian  forms 
of  orthography. 

The  author  wishes  to  thank  a  host  of  friends 
in  Norway  who  have  aided  him  in  the  collection 
and  the  verification  of  the  data  in  his  book. 
The  illustrations  are  from  photographs  taken 
by  the  author  and  personal  friends  or  pur- 
chased from  professional  photographers  in  the 
country.  Special  thanks  are  due  Mr.  William 
Barton  Hale  of  Kochester,  New  York,  and  Mr. 
George  W.  Stimson  of  Pasadena,  California, 
for  aid  in  this  line.  Mr.  Hale  generously 
placed  his  large  collection  of  several  hundred 
excellent  Norwegian  photographs  at  the  dis- 
posal of  the  author;  and  several  of  the  best 
illustrations  in  the  book  are  from  his  collection. 

WILL  S.  MONROE. 


CONTENTS 


FAOB 

CHAPTER   I 

GEOGRAPHY   OF  SCANDINAVIA 

Extent  and  structure  of  the  Scandinavian  peninsula  — 
The  Kjolen  upland  —  The  Dovrefjeld  highland  —  The 
Plateau  of  southern  Norway  —  Effects  of  the  Ice  Age  — 
Snow-fields  and  glaciers  —  The  Jostedal  and  the  Supper- 
helle  —  Origin  and  character  of  the  Norwegian  fjords  — 
Coast  islands  —  The  Lofoten  chain  —  Midnight  sun  and 
winter  darkness  —  Climate  of  Norway  —  Temperature 
and  rainfall  —  Wild  animals,  birds,  and  sea-fowls  — 
The  flora  of  Norway 1 


CHAPTER   II 

THE  VIKING  AGE 

Earliest  human  habitation  in  Norway  —  The  stone  age  — 
The  civilization  of  the  bronze  age  —  The  iron  age  and 
the  viking  period  —  The  vikings  characterized  —  Dis- 
tinct historic  periods  of  the  viking  age  —  Conquests  in 
Normandy,  Great  Britain,  and  the  south  —  Amalgama- 
tion of  the  vikings  —  Ravages  in  France,  England,  and 
Germany  —  Contact  with  Christianity  —  Recovered 
ancient  viking  grave-ships  —  The  Gokstad  ship  —  Burial 
of  viking  chiefs  —  The  recently  discovered  Oseberg 
ship  —  Industries  and  domestic  life  of  the  vikings  .  .  16 
xiii 


xiv Contents 

PAGE 

CHAPTER    III 

UNDER   THE   OLD   NORSE   KINGS 

Norway  one  of  the  oldest  sovereign  states  —  Viking  age  the 
beginning  of  recorded  history  —  The  first  Olaf  —  Harald 
the  Fair-Haired  —  Norse  colonization  —  Haakon  the 
Good  the  first  Christian  king  —  Harald  Gray  fell  and 
his  brothers  —  Earl  Haakon  and  paganism  —  The  ro- 
mantic career  of  Olaf  Trygvesson  —  Adoption  of  Chris- 
tianity —  Discovery  and  settlement  of  North  America  — 
Picturesque  career  of  Olaf  the  Saint  —  Consequences 
of  a  vigorous  policy  —  Magnus  the  Good  and  Harald 
the  Hard-Ruler  —  Olaf  the  Quiet  and  the  arts  of  peace 
—  Magnus  the  Bare-Leg  and  the  Scotch  islands  —  The 
illegitimate  sons  of  Magnus  —  Eyestein  and  industrial 
development  —  A  century  of  strife  —  The  Birch-legs 
and  the  triumph  of  the  peasants  —  Sverre  Sigurdsson, 
Norway's  greatest  king  —  Haakon  Haakonsson  the 
Old  —  A  succession  of  weak  rulers  —  The  Hanseatic 
league  —  The  "  Black  Death  "  —  Union  with  Denmark 
and  Sweden  ...  28 


CHAPTER    IV 

UNION  WITH  DENMARK  AND  SWEDEN 

Queen  Margaret  and  the  union  of  Norway,  Sweden,  and 
Denmark  —  Provisions  of  the  Kalmar  union  —  The 
weakness  of  King  Eric  —  Withdrawal  of  Sweden  from 
the  union  —  Loss  of  the  Scotch  islands  —  Oppressions 
of  the  Danish  kings  —  The  Protestant  reformation  and 
the  adoption  of  the  Lutheran  religion  —  Seven  years'  war 
with  Sweden  —  Misery  in  Norway  under  Frederick  IV  — 
German  Puritanism  —  Norway  separated  from  Den- 
mark and  united  with  Sweden  —  The  Eidsvold  con- 
stitution —  Conflicts  between  king  and  parliament  — 
Oscar  I  and  Oscar  II  —  Events  which  culminated  in  the 
rupture  with  Sweden 54 


Contents  xv 


CHAPTER    V 

HAAKON   VII   AND   THE   NEW   KINGDOM 

Rejection  of  the  consular  service  bill  leads  to  the  separation 
from  Sweden  —  Result  of  the  general  plebiscite  in  Nor- 
way —  Terms  of  separation  —  Haakon  VII  elected 
sovereign  of  the  new  kingdom  —  Social  and  personal 
qualities  of  the  young  king  —  Norway  a  constitutional 
monarchy  —  The  national  parliament  —  Executive 
department  of  the  government  —  Simplicity  of  Nor- 
wegian laws  —  Crime  and  criminals  —  Organization  of 
the  Norwegian  courts  —  Army  and  navy  —  Government 
revenues  and  expenditures  —  Nature  of  the  direct  and 
indirect  taxes  —  Free-trade  and  protectionist  policies  — 
The  national  debt  —  Financial  obligations  of  the  mu- 
nicipalities —  The  monetary  system  of  Norway  —  Na- 
tional and  savings  banks  and  their  supervision  .  .  70 


CHAPTER    VI 

THE   PEOPLE   OP  NORWAY 

Norway  the  home  of  the  purest  Teutonic  ethnic  stock  — 
Physical  characteristics  of  the  people  —  Stature  — 
Mental  characteristics  —  Independence  and  absence  of 
hereditary  aristocracy  —  Talent  recruited  from  the 
the  ranks  of  the  peasants  —  Moral  traits  of  the  people  — 
Honesty  and  kindness  to  animals  —  Aptitude  for  trade 
and  travel  —  Cleanliness,  personal  and  otherwise  — 
Standards  of  sexual  morality  —  Charities  and  correc- 
tions —  Sanitation  and  health  —  Area  and  population 
of  the  country  —  Emigration  to  the  United  States  — 
Increase  in  the  face  of  emigration  —  Urban  and  sub- 
urban population  —  Growth  of  the  capital  —  Improve- 
ment of  the  condition  of  the  industrial  classes  —  Child- 
labour  and  the  employment  of  women  —  Insurance 
against  accident  —  Social  and  political  legislation  .  .  87 


xvi Contents 

PAGE 

CHAPTER  VII 

LAPPS  AND   THE   POLAR  REGIONS 

Polar  sections  of  Norway  and  the  Lapps  —  Climate  of  the 
polar  regions  —  Rainfall  and  fog  —  The  North  Cape  and 
the  midnight  sun  —  The  aurora  borealis  —  The  nomadic 
Lapps  —  Physical  and  mental  characteristics  —  Dress  of 
the  men  and  the  women  —  Mountain  Lapps  and  Sea 
Lapps  —  The  reindeer  in  the  economic  life  of  the  people 
Low  state  of  civilization  in  Finmark  —  The  Finns  and 
their  habits 104 

CHAPTER   VIII 
NORSE  RELIGIONS:   OLD  AND  NEW 

Heathenism,  Christianity,  and  the  faith  of  Martin  Luther  — 
Norway  the  most  Protestant  country  in  the  world  — 
Early  Scandinavian  mythology  —  Odin  and  Thor  the 
supreme  gods  —  Resemblance  to  their  Greek  confreres 

—  Minor  Norse  gods  —  The  ancient  heathen  temple  and 
its  service  —  Sacrifice  the  chief  rite  —  Introduction  of 
Christianity  into   Norway  —  The  German  reformation 
movement  —  Creed  of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  church 

—  Dissent  and  the  Haugianere  —  Ecclesiastical  divisions 
of  Norway  —  Confirmation  in  the  life  of  the  child  — 
Compensation  and  duties  of  the  clergy         .       .       .       .115 

CHAPTER   IX 

EDUCATION   IN  NORWAY 

Common  school  education  universal  in  Norway  —  State 
control  —  Domestic  education  —  Course  of  study  and 
qualification  of  teachers  —  Secondary  education  — 
The  national  university  at  Christiania  —  Technical  and 
special  education  —  Art  and  industrial  education  — 
Learned  societies  —  Public  libraries  —  Newspapers  and 
reviews  —  Press  censorship  during  the  union  with  Den- 
mark —  Effect  of  the  Eidsvold  constitution  —  Some  of 
the  earliest  journals  —  Newpapers  and  the  Landsmaal 


Contents xvii 

PAGE 

—  Efforts  to  make  Norse  dialects  the  official  language 
of  the  country  —  Literary  defects  of  the  Landsmaal  — 
The  Dano-Norwegian  and  the  New-Norwegian  —  Un- 
scious  approximation  of  the  two  languages  .  .  .  .131 

CHAPTER   X 

HIGHWAYS,   RAILWAYS,   AND  WATEWAYS 

Excellent  posting  system  in  Norway  —  Carrioles,  stolk- 
jaerres,  and  sledges  —  Norwegian  horses  —  Roads  and 
road-building  —  Some  fine  mountain  highways  — 
How  the  roads  are  kept  in  repair  —  State  railways  of 
Norway  —  Enormous  cost  of  construction  —  Leading 
lines  —  Fjord-boating  facilities  —  Lake  steamers  — 
Canals  of  Norway  —  Postal  telegraph,  and  telephone 
systems 151 

CHAPTER   XI 

FARM -LIFE   AND   AGRICULTURE 

Small  proportion  of  the  land  surface  susceptible  to  culti- 
vation —  Farmers  small  proprietors — Variety  of  agricul- 
tural products  —  Haymaking  —  Horses  and  cattle  — 
Buildings  on  a  Norwegian  farmstead  —  The  stabur  — 
The  mountain  saeter  —  Dairying  —  Simple  food  — 
Varied  industrial  activities  of  the  farmers  —  Norwegian 
names  —  How  emigration  has  influenced  agriculture  — 
Attempts  to  improve  agricultural  conditions  —  Land 
and  cultivation  loans  —  Agricultural  societies  and 
education  —  Increase  of  price  of  landed  property  — 
The  cotter  system  —  Entails  and  community  property  .  163 

CHAPTER   XII 

FORESTS,    FISHERIES,   AND  COMMERCE 

Vast  forest  lands  of  Norway  —  Conifers  the  most  impor- 
tant trees  —  Extensive  use  of  birch  for  wood-pulp  — 
The  lumber  industries  —  Value  of  timber  products  — 
Importance  of  the  fisheries  —  Cod,  herring,  and  mackerel 


xviii Contents 

PAGE 

—  Crew    of   a    fishing   smack  —  Handicraft    industries 
in  Norway  —  Manufactures  —  Mineral  products  —  Im- 
portance of  commerce  —  Exports  and  imports  —  Foreign 
trade  relations 178 

CHAPTER   XIII 

FJORDS   OP  THE   WEST  COAST 

Character  of  Norwegian  fjords  and  their  branches  —  Their 
individuality  —  An  American  traveller's  description  — 

—  The  Hardanger  fjord  and  Odde  —  Native  costumes  — 
Waterfalls   of   the    Hardanger  —  The    Sogne   and   the 
Nsero  fjords  —  The  Nord  fjord  and  its  near-by  glacial 
lakes  —  The  Geiranger  fjor.d  and  the  "  Seven  Sisters  " 

—  Hellesylt  and  the  Norangsdal  —  Marok  —  Molde  and 
the   Romsdal  —  The   fjords   north   of   the   Trondhjem 
basin 190 

CHAPTER  XIV 

FJELDS  AND   MOUNTAIN  VALLEYS 

The  southern  plateau  and  its  mountains  and  mountain 
valleys  —  The  Saetersdal  —  Telemarken  and  its  pic- 
turesque costumes  —  Bergen  to  Vossevangen  —  The 
Finneloft  —  Over  Stalheim  —  The  Naerodal  —  Lserdals- 
oren  —  The  Valders  route  —  Husum  and  the  old  tim- 
ber church  at  Borgund  —  The  descent  from  Nystuen  to 
Skogstad  —  Fagernses  and  Lake  Spirillen  —  The  moun- 
tain peaks  and  waterfalls  of  the  Romsdal  —  The  Gud- 
bransdal  205 

CHAPTER   XV 

TRONDHJEM:  ITS  SAINT  AND  ITS  CATHEDRAL 
Trondjem  once  the  residence  of  the  Norse  kings  —  Its  loca- 
tion —  Mediaeval  foundation  —  Olaf  the  Saint  and  his 
early  career  —  His  reign  one  of  the  mile-stones  in  Nor- 
wegian history  —  His  canonization  and  the  St.  Olaf  cult 
— The  national  cathedral  —  Selection  of  Trondjem  as  the 


Contents xix 

PAOB 

archiepiscopal  see  —  Progress  of  the  cathedral  during  the 
reign  of  Haakon  Haakonsson  —  Fearful  conflagrations  — 
Fate  of  the  cathedral  after  the  reformation  —  Recent 
restorations  —  Other  notable  historic  associations  in 
Trondhjem 220 


CHAPTER   XVI 

BERGEN  AND  THE  HANSEATIC  LEAGUE 

Picturesque  location  of  Bergen  —  Foundation  of  the  city 
by  King  Olaf  the  Quiet  —  Early  monastic  institutions  — 
The  royal  palace  and  Haakon's  Hall  —  Bergen  during 
the  civil  wars  —  Nature  of  the  Hanseatic  league  —  Its 
place  in  the  history  of  European  commerce  —  First 
foothold  in  Bergen  —  Character  of  the  German  mer- 
chants —  Articles  of  trade  —  Oppressive  power  of  the 
league  finally  broken  —  Bergen  during  the  eighteenth 
century  —  Commerce  injured  by  the  war  between  Den- 
mark and  England  —  Growth  of  industrial  arts  —  The 
fishing  industry  —  Municipal  institutions  —  Art  treas- 
ures —  Leper  hospitals 234 


CHAPTER   XVII 

CHRISTIANIA   THE   MODERN  CAPITAL 

The  modern  capital  founded  by  King  Christian  IV  — 
Its  rapid  growth  —  Three  destructive  fires  —  Some 
notable  buildings  —  Fortress  of  Akershus  and  other 
historic  monuments  —  Control  of  the  liquor  traffic  in 
Christiania  —  Marked  decrease  in  intemperance  —  Im- 
provement in  public  morals  and  decrease  in  the  death 
rate  —  The  Christiania  fjord  —  Bygdo  and  the  people's 
museum  —  Hanko  and  summer  resorts  —  Holmenkollen 
and  winter  sports  —  Skiing,  ski-jumping,  and  ski-sailing 
—  Tobogganing,  hill-sliding,  and  ice-pegging  .  .  .  247 


xx Contents 

PAGE 
CHAPTER   XVIII 

NORSE    LETTERS   AND    HENHIK   IBSEN 

Origin  of  the  languages  and  literature  of  Scandinavia  — 
Revived  interest  in  the  old  Norse  —  The  ancient  runes 

—  Literary  influences  of  the  union  with  Denmark  — 
Peder  Dass  and  the  seventeenth  century  —  Union  with 
Sweden   and   literary   independence  —  Wergeland    and 
Welhaven  —  Norwegian  literature  to-day  —  Bjornson  — 
His  romances,  dramas,  and  personality  —  Henrik  Ibsen 

—  Socialist  and  psychologist  —  "  Peer  Gynt  "  and  Nor- 
wegian peasant  life  —  Ibsen's  art  —  "  Brand  "  —  Ibsen's 
dramas  characterized  —  Current  men  of  letters  —  Jonas 
Lie  and  his  romances  —  The  novelettes  of  Kielland  — 
Heilberg  and  dramatic  literature  —  The  bow  of  promise 

of  Norwegian  literary  art 260 

CHAPTER   XIX 

FOLK  -  MUSIC   AND   EDVARD   GRIEG 

Origin  of  Norwegian  folk-songs  —  How  they  typify  the 
country  —  Significance  of  the  epics  —  Ancient  musical 
instruments  —  The  Hardanger  violin,  the  lur,  and  the 
langeleik  —  Rhythms  of  the  national  dances  —  Ole  Bull 
and  national  music  —  Labours  of  Kjerulf,  Nordraak, 
Winter-Hjelm,  and  Christian  Sinding  —  Women  com- 
posers —  Edvard  Grieg  the  greatest  of  the  Norwegian 
creative  tone-artists  —  His  early  training  and  studies  in 
Germany  —  Wide  range  of  his  compositions  —  The 
national  element  of  his  music  —  Pianoforte  composi- 
tions —  Grieg's  lyric  art-songs  —  Orchestral  and  cham- 
ber-music —  Place  of  Grieg  in  the  history  of  music  — 
Concert  virtuosi  —  Norwegian  pianists  —  Choral  socie- 
ties and  music  festivals  —  The  Norwegian  Musical  Union  278 

CHAPTER   XX 

PAINTING,    SCULPTURE,    AND   ARCHITECTURE 

Recent  development  of  national  art-consciousness  —  First 
generation  of  painters  influenced  by  Denmark  and  Ger- 


Contents xxi 

PAGE 

many  —  Dahl,  Feamley,  Baade,  and  Frich  —  The  second 
period  in  the  history  of  Norwegian  painting  and  the  in- 
fluence of  the  Dtisseldorf  school  —  National  themes  — 
Contemporary  artists  —  Otto  Sinding,  Heyerdahl, 
Thaulow,  and  Werenskiold  —  The  younger  painters  — 
Sculpture  allied  with  woodwork  —  Stephen  Sinding  and 
Skeibrok  —  Development  of  architecture  —  Timber 
buildings  —  The  cathedrals  —  Old  churches  at  Borgund, 
Vik,  and  Reinlid  —  Domestic  architecture  ....  29G 

APPENDIXES 309 

BIBLIOGRAPHY  ....    314 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


HAAKON  VII.,  KING  OP  NORWAY  .... 

THE  JOSTEDALSBRS  I  THE  LARGEST  ICE  -  FIELD  IN  EUROPE. 
CROSSING  THE  FOLGEFONDE  ICE  -  FIELD  WITH  SLEDGES 

IN  SUMMER  .......  •  6 

THE  MIDNIGHT  SUN  .........  10 

BlRD  -  CLIFFS  IN  FlNMARK            .......  14 

A  MODERN  NORDLAND  BOAT.  —  THE  OSEBERG  SHIP        .  26 

THE  NCERO  FJORD      .........  47 

IN  THE  VALDERS        .........  52 

A  MOUNTAIN  LAKE   .....       ....  62 

THE  ROYAL  FAMILY  OF  NORWAY  ......  74 

NATIONAL  COSTUME  IN  THE  HARDANGER     ....  90 

NATIONAL  COSTUME  IN  TELEMARKEN           ....  94 

IN   THE    HlTTERDAL.  -  IN    THE    S^ETERSDAL  ....  98 

A  BRIDE  IN  THE  NUMEDAL      .......  100 

A  GROUP  OF  SEA  LAPPS.  —  A  GROUP  OF  MOUNTAIN 

LAPPS           ..........  110 

HERD  OF  REINDEER  .........  112 

GOING  TO  CHURCH     ........       .  130 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CHRISTIANIA    ......       .136 

A  NORWEGIAN  CARRIOLE         .......  152 

RAILWAY  FROM  BERGEN  TO  VOSSEVANGEN  ....  156 

STEAMER  -  YACHT,  "  HAAKON  VII."  —  LOCK  IN  THE  SKEIN- 

NORDSJO  -  BANDAK  CANAL  ..;...  160 

A  FJORD  FARM  ..........  164 

XXIII 


xxiv  List  of  Illustrations 

PAGE 

HAYING  IN  THE  FJORDS.  —  DRYING  HAY     .       .       .       .166 

A  NORWEGIAN  MAUD  MULLER 168 

A  MOUNTAIN  S^TER 170 

IN  THE  PINE  FOREST  ZONE 180 

A  FISHING  VILLAGE.  —  DRYING  CODFISH     ....  182 

HAMMERFEST 184 

A  FJORD  FLOUR  MILL 188 

NATIONAL  COSTUME  AND  INDUSTRY 190 

THE  SEVEN  SISTERS 199 

THE  NORANGSDAL 201 

THE  ESPELANDSFOS.  —  THE  STORSS.ETERFOS       .       .       .  202 

LOEN  ON  THE  NORD  FFORD. MOLDE         ....  204 

THE  FlNNELOFT  AT  VOSSEVANGEN 204 

STALHEIM 210 

THE  SIVLEFOS  IN  THE  N^ERO'DAL 212 

THE  BORGUND  CHURCH 214 

LAKE  SPIRILLEN.  —  THE  ROMSDAL 217 

THE  BROAD  STREETS  OF  TRONDHJEM.  —  THE  UNION  RAIL- 
WAY STATION  AT  TRONDHJEM 232 

BERGEN  FISH  MARKET 243 

ON  THE  CHRISTIANIA  FJORD 254 

SKI -DRIVING.  —  SKI-JUMPING 257 

HENRIK  IBSEN 266 

FRIDTJOF  NANSEN •       •       •  274 

EDVARD  GRIEG.  —  CHRISTIAN  SINDINO 284 

MRS.  BACKER  -  GRONDAHL 286 

THE  REINLID  CHURCH 307 

MEDIEVAL  NORSE  DOMESTIC  ARCHITECTURE      .       •       •  308 


IN  VIKING  LAND 


GEOGRAPHY   OF   SCANDINAVIA 

Extent  and  structure  of  the  Scandinavian  peninsula  —  The 
KjBlen  upland  —  The  Dovref jeld  highland  —  The  Plateau  of 
southern  Norway  —  Effects  of  the  Ice  Age  —  Snow-fields  and 
glaciers  —  The  Jostedal  and  the  Supperhelle  —  Origin  and 
character  of  the  Norwegian  fjords  —  Coast  islands  —  The 
Lofoten  chain  —  Midnight  sun  and  winter  darkness  —  Cli- 
mate of  Norway  —  Temperature  and  rainfall  —  Wild  ani- 
mals, birds,  and  sea- fowls  —  The  flora  of  Norway. 

THE  Scandinavian  peninsula  is  1,160  miles 
long  and  it  varies  in  width  from  240  to  470 
miles.  It  forms  a  reasonably  elevated  plateau 
and  is  traversed  by  a  series  of  mountain  ranges 
that  form  the  water-shed  and  a  natural  bound- 
ary between  Norway  and  Sweden.  On  the  west 
side  of  the  plateau  there  are  narrow  fjords  — 
deep  gorges  filled  with  water  —  that  penetrate 
into  the  peninsula  for  many  miles  and  on  the 
long  eastern  slopes  there  are  many  mountain 
valleys  and  numerous  lakes.  Geologically 

i 


In  Viking  Land 


Scandinavia  is  very  old,  archaean  rocks  being 
widely  spread  over  the  south  and  east;  and 
where  they  do  not  appear  on  the  surface,  they 
are  covered  by  glacial  formations,  sand,  and 
clay.  Structurally  it  is  made  up  of  detached 
plateaus  and  mountain  ranges  from  two  to 
three  thousand  feet  above  sea  level. 

Mountain  ranges,  more  or  less  broken  in 
character,  extend  from  the  Naze  to  the  Ve- 
ranger  fjord.  The  plateau  has  three  reason- 
ably well  marked  divisions  —  the  Kjolen  in 
the  north,  the  Dovref  jeld  in  the  center,  and  the 
Langf jeld  in  the  south.  The  highest  point  in 
the  Kjolen  plateau  is  the  Sulitelma  (6,151 
feet),  not  a  separate  peak  but  a  group  of  crests 
resting  on  a  common  base.  Being  within  the 
arctic  circle  it  has  immense  snow-fields  and 
glaciers.  At  Trondhjem  there  is  a  depression 
in  the  Kjolen  upland,  the  highest  point  in  the 
highway  which  crosses  the  plateau  being  only 
1,670  feet  above  the  sea.  The  Dovrefjeld  is 
scarcely  a  plateau,  but  a  series  of  highlands 
and  glacial-worn  mountain  ranges.  Here  are 
found  the  highest  peaks  in  Scandinavia  —  the 
Glittertind  (8,385  feet)  and  the  Galdhopig 
(8,400  feet).  Several  of  the  other  peaks  of  the 
Jotunheim  exceed  six  thousand  feet.  The  snow 


Geography  of  Scandinavia 


line  here  is  only  5,580  feet  and  the  portions  of 
the  plateau  between  the  peaks  are  entirely  cov- 
ered with  snow.  The  Justedal,  the  largest  ice- 
field in  Europe,  is  here,  and  there  are  a  num- 
ber of  lakes  at  elevations  of  more  than  three 
thousand  feet. 

To  the  south  of  the  Dovrefjeld  plateau  is  the 
highland  of  southern  Norway  formed  by  the 
Langfjeld,  the  Hardangerfjeld,  and  the  Fille- 
f jeld.  West  of  the  plateau  are  deep  fjords  and 
rugged  cliffs;  to  the  south  are  vast  troughs 
which  form  several  of  the  most  picturesque 
valleys  in  Scandinavia,  and  on  the  east  are  the 
rich  woodlands,  a  succession  of  forest-clad  hill- 
sides, with  bits  of  cultivated  ground  in  the  in- 
tervening hollows.  While  topographically  not 
distinct  from  the  Dovrefjeld,  it  constitutes  a 
separate  plateau,  with  very  few  single  peaks 
or  groups  of  peaks  rising  above  the  general 
level.  The  relatively  even  summits  suggest 
that  it  was  originally  a  plain  of  denudation 
that  was  subsequently  forced  up  into  an  arch. 
The  summits  that  tower  above  the  plateau  are 
of  harder  kinds  of  rock  and  have  better  with- 
stood the  destructive  forces  that  have  levelled 
the  remainder  of  the  plain. 

There  was  a  period  when  the  Scandinavian 


In  Viking  Land 


peninsula  was  overrun  by  glaciers  and  snow- 
fields  as  Greenland  is  to-day.  This  period  is 
known  as  the  ice  age.  It  is  difficult  to  say  how 
long  ago  this  was,  but  judging  from  the  con- 
siderable geographic  changes  that  have  since 
taken  place  it  is  safe  to  conclude  that  it  was 
several  hundred  thousand  years  ago.  The  an- 
cient ice  sheet  in  Norway  is  estimated  to  have 
been  from  six  to  seven  thousand  feet  thick,  and 
the  amount  of  work  done  by  the  glaciers,  in  the 
way  of  erosion,  transportation  and  the  deposi- 
tion of  rock  and  earthy  material,  was  very 
great.  Since  the  deposition  toward  the  mar- 
gin of  a  glacier  must  be  commensurate  with 
its  erosion  near  the  center  of  movement,  the 
waste  to  the  mountains  of  Norway  by  glacial 
erosion  must  have  been  something  enormous. 
Much  of  this  erosive  material  was  carried  be- 
yond the  Baltic  and  forms  the  subglacial  de- 
position of  northern  Germany. 

In  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  Scandinavian 
peninsula  has  only  a  moderate  elevation,  its 
northern  latitude  and  moist  climate  continue  to 
favour  the  growth  of  glaciers  and  ice-fields  at 
relatively  low  altitudes.  The  portions  of  the 
Norwegian  plateau  south  of  the  sixty-seventh 
degree  of  north  latitude,  that  have  elevations 


Geography  of  Scandinavia 


of  more  than  five  thousand  feet,  are  capital 
glacier  breeders.  Norway  has  in  consequence 
more  than  five  thousand  square  miles  of  snow- 
fields.  The  Jostedal  snow-field,  in  latitude 
sixty-two  degrees  north,  covers  five  hundred 
and  eighty  square  miles  and  twenty-four  gla- 
ciers push  from  it  outward  towards  the  Ger- 
man sea.  The  largest  of  the  glaciers  is  five 
miles  long  and  three-fourths  of  a  mile  wide. 
The  Fondalen  snow-field  covers  about  the  same 
area  as  the  Jostedal;  but  on  account  of  its 
northern  location  —  it  is  between  latitude 
sixty-six  and  sixty-seven  degrees  —  its  glaciers 
descend  through  the  valleys  quite  to  the  ocean 
level. 

The  Suppehelle  glacier  in  the  Sogne  is  a 
branch  of  the  massive  Jostedalsbrae.  It  forces 
its  way  through  the  narrow  gap  in  the  moun- 
tains and  expands  in  the  lower  ravines  into  a 
vast  sea  of  ice  full  of  jagged  ridges  and  pin- 
nacles. These  glitter  and  scintillate  in  the 
noonday  sun  with  a  cruel  brilliancy.  The  pale 
green  streams  which  issue  from  it  form  mag- 
nificently vaulted  deep  blue  caverns.  As  it 
leaves  the  ice-sheet  to  descend  to  the  ravine, 
the  glacier  gives  the  appearance  of  reversed 
billows  suddenly  congealed  in  the  act  of  break- 


In  Viking  Land 


ing.  From  the  Folgefonde,  the  most  south- 
ernly  ice-field  in  Norway,  glaciers  descend  in 
all  directions,  following  the  lines  of  the  valleys, 
the  two  most  beautiful  being  the  Buarbrae  at 
Odde  and  the  Bondhusbrse  at  Mauranger. 
These  great  snow-fields  and  glaciers  are  the 
parents  of  ten  thousand  beautiful  cascades; 
and,  even  in  midsummer,  snow  loops  every 
ledge  and  curtains  every  slope  down  as  far  as 
the  woodlands. 

The  fjords  of  Norway  furnish  additional 
evidence  of  the  erosive  power  of  the  great  ice- 
sheet  with  which  the  peninsula  was  once  cov- 
ered. The  western  coast-line  is  broken  up  by 
deep  incisions  of  the  sea  into  the  rocky  cliffs. 
No  other  force  is  known  that  could  have  hol- 
lowed out  such  a  continuous  and  uniform  series 
of  basins.  Canons  probably  existed  on  the 
slopes  of  the  plateau  before  the  glacial  period, 
and  since  then  the  rivers  have  undoubtedly 
continued  the  work  of  deepening  the  gorges; 
but  the  characteristic  fjord-basins  are  found 
only  in  countries  that  have  once  been  covered 
by  great  masses  of  inland  ice.  With  the  ex- 
ception of  those  in  Finmark,  where  the  high- 
land lowers,  the  fjords  of  Norway  are  very 
narrow  and  very  deep.  The  Sogne  at  points 


THE  JOSTEDALSBRAL:    THE  LARGEST  ICE  -  FIELD  IN  EUROPE. 


CROSSING    THE    FOLGEFONDE    ICE  -  FIELD    WITH    SLEDGES    IN 
SUMMER. 


Geography  of  Scandinavia 


attains  a  depth  of  more  than  four  thousand 
feet.  The  two  longest  of  the  fjords  are  the 
Sogne  —  one  hundred  and  thirty-six  miles  - 
and  the  Hardanger  —  one  hundred  and  four- 
teen miles.  The  fjords  for  the  most  part  are 
partially  obstructed  at  their  entrance  by  the 
remains  of  old  moraines;  and  many  of  them 
are  so  effectually  cut  off  from  the  ocean  by 
islands  and  reefs  that  fresh  water  from  the 
rains  and  melting  snows  often  covers  their 
surface  to  a  depth  of  four  feet.  Marine  algae 
likewise  give  place  to  fresh-water  plants.  The 
east  coast  of  the  peninsula  may  have  once  been 
indented  with  gorges  similar  to  the  fjords,  but 
they  have  been  gradually  filled  up  by  the  allu- 
vial deposits  of  the  rivers.  Detailed  descrip- 
tions of  the  fjords  from  the  Hardanger  to  the 
Trondhjem  depression  will  be  found  in  a  sub- 
sequent chapter. 

After  the  fjords  the  next  most  prominent 
topographical  feature  of  Norway  is  the  chain 
of  islands  which  borders  the  country  on  the 
ocean  side.  Varying  in  size  just  big  enough 
for  the  nest  of  a  sea-fowl  to  Hondo  in  the 
Lofoten  group,  which  contains  eight  hundred 
and  seventy  square  miles,  islands  are  continu- 
ous from  Stavanger  to  Magero.  They  number 


8  In  Viking  Land 

one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  and  contain 
one-fourteenth  of  the  land  surface  of  Norway 
and  one-eighth  of  the  population.  They  are 
of  the  same  geological  formation  as  the  hilly 
peninsulas  that  project  from  the  mainland,  al- 
though somewhat  less  elevated;  and,  like  the 
fjords,  they  are  the  work  of  the  inland  ice- 
glaciers.  One  can  sail  from  the  Bukn  fjord 
to  Lyngstuen  through  labyrinthine  passages  of 
grim  rocks  and  islets  in  land-locked  waters,  the 
only  considerable  breaks  being  at  the  mouths 
of  the  Folden  and  Vest  fjords  and  near  the 
North  Cape.  Many  of  the  largest  islands  are 
within  the  arctic  circle,  as  Kvalo,  on  which 
Hammerfest  is  situated,  the  Seiland,  Sorb, 
Varno,  Hvalo  and  Tromso.  Many  of  them  are 
very  mountainous,  sheer  sea-cliffs  rising  out 
of  the  ocean  to  heights  of  three  thousand  feet. 
The  Lofoten  chain  flanks  the  mainland  for 
more  than  a  hundred  miles,  the  islands  being 
so  close  together  that  when  seen  from  a  dis- 
tance they  give  the  appearance  of  a  long  moun- 
tain chain.  They  have  bold,  rugged,  and 
deeply-indented  coasts  and  elevated  interiors, 
some  of  them  being  covered  with  perpetual 
snow.  "  Like  needles,"  says  a  Norse  rhapso- 
dist,  "  their  snow-capped  peaks  pierce  the  sky. 


Geography  of  Scandinavia  9 

During  the  greater  part  of  the  year  snow  fills 
the  ravines  far  down  the  mountain  sides,  clasp- 
ing their  frosty  arms  around  the  valleys,  and 
sending  down  like  streams  of  tears  along  the 
weather-beaten  cheeks  of  these  northern  Alps, 
innumerable  foaming  waterfalls  and  roaring 
cascades,  falling  in  an  endless  variety  of  grace- 
ful shapes  into  the  profound  fjords  below. 
With  their  lofty  jagged  pinnacles,  fantastic 
chasms,  and  rugged  precipices  they  present  a 
picture  of  unutterable  grandeur."  The  coasts 
of  the  Lofoten  islands  are  inhabited  by  fisher- 
men, these  being  the  chief  cod  and  herring 
fishing  grounds  of  Norway.  During  the  fishing 
season  forty  thousand  men  are  thus  employed 
and  the  annual  yield  exceeds  two  million  dol- 
lars. The  islands  are  exposed  on  the  western 
side  to  severe  storms,  and  near  the  south  end 
of  the  group  is  the  famous  whirlpool  known  as 
the  maelstrom. 

The  summer  days  in  Norway  are  long  and 
bright,  but  in  the  winter  they  are  short  and 
dark.  A  third  of  the  country  is  in  the  latitude 
of  the  midnight  sun  and  winter  darkness. 
Even  in  the  southern  sections  of  the  country, 
twilight  asserts  itself  during  the  entire  night 
of  the  summer.  At  Stavanger  the  nights  are 


10  In  Viking  Land 

light  from  the  last  of  April  to  the  middle  of 
August;  at  Bergen  and  Christiania  they  begin 
a  week  earlier  and  end  a  week  later,  and  at 
Trondhjem  there  is  broad  daylight  at  midnight 
from  the  23rd  of  May  to  the  20th  of  July. 
The  midnight  sun,  however,  is  not  visible 
south  of  the  polar  circle.  It  is  above  the 
horizon  throughout  the  twenty-four  hours  at 
Bodo  from  the  3rd  of  June  to  the  7th  of  July ; 
at  Tromso  from  the  19th  of  May  to  the  22d  of 
July,  and  at  the  North  Cape  from  the  12th  of 
May  to  the  29th  of  July.  There  are  corre- 
sponding periods  during  November,  December, 
and  January  when  the  sun  is  not  seen.  But  the 
darkness  of  winter  is  by  no  means  so  great  as 
might  be  imagined.  The  whiteness  of  the  snow 
gives  a  glimmer  of  light  and  the  prolonged 
flashes  of  the  aurora  borealis  set  the  heavens 
in  a  blaze,  so  that  the  darkness  of  the  long 
winter  nights  is  turned  into  a  sort  of  twilight ; 
and  the  beauty  and  the  brilliance  of  the  north- 
ern lights  compensate  in  some  degree  for  the 
absence  of  the  sun's  rays. 

Extending  as  it  does  through  thirteen  de- 
grees of  latitude,  Norway  has  a  wide  range  of 
climate.  South  of  the  Dovrefjeld,  the  mean 
annual  temperature  varies  from  40°  Fahren- 


Geography  of  Scandinavia          11 

belt  at  Lindesnaes  to  31°  at  Fjeldberg.  July  is 
the  hottest  month,  when,  in  the  south,  the  ther- 
mometer may  register  80°  to  90°.  The  winter 
temperature  of  southern  Norway  is  relatively 
mild,  when  one  recalls  the  latitude.  The  mean 
winter  register  for  Christiania  is  25°,  at  Ton- 
saasen  in  the  Valders  17°,  but  in  the  mountain 
valleys  it  falls  much  below  zero.  Rainfall  is 
very  unevenly  distributed  over  southern  Nor- 
way. At  Grimstad  on  the  coast  the  average 
annual  rainfall  is  forty-eight  inches,  at  Chris- 
tiania twenty-four  inches,  and  in  the  Dovre- 
fjeld  less  than  twelve  inches. 

The  western  coast  of  Norway,  coming  di- 
rectly under  the  influence  of  the  Gulf  Stream, 
has  a  milder  and  more  uniform  climate.  Sum- 
mer lasts  four  months  and  the  mean  annual 
temperature  ranges  from  41°  at  Vossevangen 
(altitude  184  feet)  to  38°  at  Rodal  (altitude 
1,411  feet).  July  and  August  are  the  hottest 
of  the  summer  months  and  February  is  the 
coldest  month  of  the  winter.  Extremes  of  tem- 
perature are  least  on  the  coast  and  greatest 
inland.  The  rainfall  of  western  Norway  is 
heavy,  diminishing  from  the  coast  inland.  At 
Bergen  it  exceeds  seventy-five  inches,  but  the 
interior  sections  get  scarcely  half  that  amount. 


12  In  Viking  Land 

The  decrease  of  the  rainfall  from  the  coast 
inland  is  well  illustrated  in  the  Sogne  fjord. 
At  its  entrance  the  annual  rainfall  is  eighty 
inches,  and  at  Laerdalsoren,  eighty-seven  miles 
inland,  it  is  fifty  inches;  on  the  Nsero  fjord, 
seventy  miles  from  the  coast,  it  is  thirty-one 
inches,  and  at  Laerdalsoren,  eighty-seven  miles 
from  the  entrance  of  the  fjord,  it  is  only  six- 
teen inches. 

The  wild  animals  of  Norway  are  noticeably 
tamer  than  in  other  countries.  This  is  prob- 
ably due  to  the  long  winters  when  they  are 
forced  to  seek  the  habitations  of  men  for  food, 
thus  overcoming  to  a  degree  their  instinctive 
fears.  The  elk  and  the  deer  are  the  most  inter- 
esting; of  the  large  wild  animals,  although  both 
are  being  rapidly  exterminated.  A  few  elk  are 
still  found  among  the  mountain  ash  and  willow 
on  the  highlands,  and  there  are  limited  num- 
bers of  the  red  deer  on  the  coast  islands  south 
of  Trondhjem.  The  wild  reindeer,  rather 
darker  in  colour  than  the  domesticated  animals 
of  Lapland,  are  still  reasonably  abundant. 
The  most  important  carniverous  animals  are 
the  bear,  the  wolf,  the  glutton,  the  lynx,  and 
the  fox.  The  brown  bear  is  found  only  among 
the  pine  forests  of  the  woodlands  and  a  few 


Geography  of  Scandinavia          13 

polar  bears  still  cross  the  ice  from  Spitzbergen 
to  the  northern  islands  during  the  winter 
months.  The  arctic  fox,  much  prized  for  its 
skin,  which  turns  white  when  exposed  to  the 
severe  cold,  is  found  in  considerable  numbers 
in  Finmark.  The  most  important  rodents  of 
Norway  are  the  lemmings.  In  size  and  form 
they  resemble  the  mole,  although  the  colour  is 
golden  buff  and  they  have  large  black  spots  on 
the  neck.  Their  habitat  is  Lapland,  but  large 
swarms  emigrate  south  each  year  in  search 
of  food;  and  the  ease  with  which  they  climb 
the  steep  mountain  cliffs  and  swim  the  streams 
is  something  astonishing. 

To  except  sea-fowls,  the  bird  life  of  Nor- 
way is  neither  as  varied  nor  as  abundant  as 
might  be  expected.  Yellow-hammers,  wagtails, 
blackbirds,  and  magpies  are  most  often  seen. 
In  a  country  where  the  gun  is  the  sole  means 
of  obtaining  fresh  meat  for  the  table,  the  game 
laws  are  very  loosely  observed.  In  conse- 
quence such  game  birds  as  grouse,  plover, 
black-cock,  ptarmigan  are  scarce ;  and  a  sports- 
man who  hoped  to  get  a  good  bag  in  a  day's 
hunt  would  require  seven  league  boots.  Eagles, 
ospreys,  and  falcons  are  still  reasonably  abun- 
dant among  the  mountains.  Enormous  colonies 


14  In  Viking  Land 

of  sea-birds  breed  on  the  cliffs  of  the  western 
fjords  and  northern  islands,  including  the 
kittiwake,  the  puffin,  the  cormorant,  the  auk, 
and  the  eider-duck.  They  are  much  hunted 
for  their  eggs,  feathers,  and  flesh.  The  eider- 
ducks  are  being  better  protected  in  recent 
times.  The  owner  of  the  ground  where  the 
nest  is  built  is  permitted  during  the  hatching 
season  to  gather  a  certain  amount  of  the  down 
which  the  female  plucks  from  her  body.  The 
nest  is  built  of  marine  plants  but  is  lined  with 
down  of  exquisite  fineness.  As  the  lining  is 
removed  she  continues  to  reline  it  throughout 
the  period  of  incubation.  A  nest  will  produce 
half  a  pound  of  good  down  after  it  has  been 
picked  and  cleaned. 

The  student  of  plant  life  will  find  the  flora 
of  Norway  singularly  luxuriant  and  varied. 
In  the  matter  of  flowering  plants,  more  than 
fifteen  hundred  species  grow  wild  in  the  coun- 
try; and  many  of  the  varieties  are  of  the  rare 
sort  found  only  in  polar  regions.  The  lake 
basins  and  fjords  of  the  south-eastern  prov- 
inces furnish  the  greatest  number  and  variety 
of  flowering  plants,  the  neighbourhood  of 
Christiania  alone  having  more  than  nine  hun- 
dred wild  phanerogams.  Here  the  summers  are 


BIRD  -  CLIFFS    IN    FINMARK. 


Geography  of  Scandinavia          15 

relatively  long,  the  climate  moderate,  and  the 
rainfall  abundant.  Among  perennial  spring 
flowers  may  be  named  the  blue  hepatica  which 
carpets  the  woods  with  blossoms  during  April 
and  May,  the  reddish  yellow  saxifrage  which 
appears  as  soon  as  the  snow  has  gone,  several 
varieties  of  rare  wood  orchids,  the  beautiful 
but  poisonous  foxglove  with  long  spikes  of 
pale  blue  bells,  a  number  of  species  of  gentian 
similar  to  those  found  in  the  high  Alps,  and 
the  arctic  and  Scotch  heath.  The  fragile  and 
delicate  Norwegian  flora  is  in  striking  contrast 
with  the  rugged  and  gigantic  landscape  which 
it  adorns.  Battalions  of  tiny  lily  of  the  valley, 
dainty  groups  of  purple  larkspur,  the  quaint 
blossoms  of  the  dwarf  cornel,  and  the  delicate 
trailing  honeysuckle  are  found  on  the  sides  and 
at  the  bottoms  of  the  great  fjords.  Blaeberry, 
black  crowberry,  and  dogberry  cover  the  moun- 
tain knolls;  among  the  bogs  are  found  quanti- 
ties of  cloudberry,  bilberry,  and  whortleberry, 
and  wild  strawberries  and  raspberries  grow 
abundantly  in  the  valleys  that  lead  into  the 
fjords.  The  edible  berries  have  a  delicious 
aroma  that  is  peculiar  to  Norway. 


CHAPTER  n 

THE    VIKING    AGE 

Earliest  human  habitation  in  Norway  —  The  stone  age  —  The 
civilization  of  the  bronze  age  —  The  iron  age  and  the  viking 
period  —  The  vikings  characterized  —  Distinct  historic  peri- 
ods of  the  viking  age  —  Conquests  in  Normandy,  Great 
Britain,  and  the  south  —  Amalgamation  of  the  vikings  — 
Ravages  in  France,  England,  and  Germany  —  Contact  with 
Christianity  —  Recovered  ancient  viking  grave-ships  —  The 
Gokstad  ship  —  Burial  of  viking  chiefs  —  The  recently  dis- 
covered Oseberg  ship  —  Industries  and  domestic  life  of  the 
vikings. 

THE  earliest  evidences  of  human  habitation 
in  Norway  —  from  four  to  five  thousand  years 
ago  —  indicate  that*  the  people  belonged  to 
what  is  commonly  called  the  stone  age.  They 
did  not  know  the  use  of  metals,  but  employed 
in  their  stead  stone,  bone,  and  wood  for  their 
rude  tools  and  weapons.  They  had  fixed 
dwelling  places;  domesticated  animals;  buried 
their  dead  in  large  stone  chambers,  and  fol- 
lowed such  occupations  as  hunting  and  fish- 
ing. The  stone  age  persisted  in  Norway  much 
longer  than  in  .the  other  countries  of  Europe, 
in  consequence  of  which,  the  implements  found 

16 


The  Viking  Age  17 

are  more  beautiful  in  design  and  more  careful 
in  workmanship.  They  are  made  of  sand- 
stone, flint,  and  various  kinds  of  eruptive  rocks, 
while  in  the  northern  provinces  slate  was 
largely  used.  The  most  populous  parts  of 
Norway  during  the  stone  age  were  the  basins 
of  the  Christiania  and  Trondhjem  fjords. 

During  the  bronze  age  —  from  one  thousand 
to  fifteen  hundred  years  before  the  birth  of 
Christ  —  metals  came  into  general  use.  Bronze 
was  made  from  a  mixture  of  copper  and  tin, 
although  the  use  of  gold  was  also  known.  But 
as  the  bronze  had  to  be  brought  from  central 
and  southern  Europe,  and  was  therefore  very 
costly,  stone  implements  were  widely  used 
throughout  the  bronze  age  in  Norway.  Dur- 
ing this  period  agriculture  was  developed; 
animals  were  more  generally  domesticated,  and 
the  dead  were  cremated.  Among  the  notable 
memorials  of  the  bronze  age  are  the  rock  en- 
gravings. These  are  rough  drawings  scratched 
upon  the  solid  rocks  of  the  smooth  mountain 
sides;  some  represent  objects  in  nature  and 
others  have  a  symbolic  significance.  The  dis- 
tribution of  the  population  during  this  period 
was  essentially  the  same  as  during  the  stone 
age. 


18  In  Viking  Land 

The  iron  age  in  Norway  began  from  three 
to  four  hundred  years  before  the  Christian  era 
and  continued  to  the  end  of  the  viking  period 
-  about  1050  A.  D.  This  was  a  period  of 
marked  development;  population  increased; 
the  simpler  industrial  arts  were  acquired;  and 
the  culture  of  letters  began.  Both  cremation 
and  burial  are  found  throughout  the  iron  age. 
To  this  period  belong  the  runic  inscriptions  of 
Norway.  These  were  carved  upon  stone,  weap- 
ons, and  ornaments,  and  the  characters  were 
based  upon  the  Latin  alphabet.  The  older 
runic  alphabet  consisted  of  twenty-four  letters, 
but  in  later  times  the  characters  were  reduced 
in  size  and  in  number  to  sixteen.  The  viking 
expeditions,  during  the  latter  part  of  the  iron 
age,  tended  to  modify  greatly  the  character  of 
Norse  civilization  by  the  introduction  of  man- 
ners and  customs  from  the  more  advanced 
countries  of  central  and  southern  Europe. 

From  the  seventh  to  the  tenth  centuries 
there  issued  from  the  fjords  of  the  west  coast 
of  Norway  hardy  adventurers  and  pirates  who 
ravaged  and  subdued  most  of  the  coasts  which 
they  visited.  They  were  valorous  and  plucky, 
greedy  and  bloodthirsty.  Their  religion  had 
inculcated  doctrines  of  conquest  and  war,  and 


The  Viking  Age  19 

the  Golden  Rule  of  Odin  and  Thor  had  taught 
them  that  might  makes  right.  They  swept 
whole  districts  with  fire  and  sword,  sparing 
nothing  they  could  carry  off  in  their  ships. 
More  than  half  of  Great  Britain  and  the  fairest 
province  of  France  became  theirs.  They  gave 
kings  to  England;  grand-dukes  to  Normandy; 
and  in  Sicily  they  carved  out  important  prin- 
cipalities. These  powerful  and  dreaded  sea- 
warriors  and  pirates  are  known  in  history  as 
the  vikings. 

Sars,  in  his  authoritative  two-volume  history 
of  Norway,  divides  the  viking  age  into  three 
historic  periods.  During  the  first  period  cruises 
more  or  less  tentative  and  irregular  were 
made  to  Great  Britain,  Denmark,  and  Flanders, 
where  coast  towns  and  monasteries  were  at- 
tacked, after  which  the  plunderers  returned  to 
Norway  with  their  booty.  During  the  second 
period  the  expeditions  were  characterized  by 
more  definite  organization  and  greater  skill  in 
the  art  of  war.  Not  only  were  foreign  cities 
attacked  and  plundered,  but  they  were  fortified 
and  held  as  objective  points  from  which  to 
make  forays  into  the  surrounding  country. 
The  Norse  sagas  not  only  give  ethical  sanction 
to  viking  expeditions,  but  regard  them  as  legit- 


20  In  Viking  Land 

imate  aids  in  the  education  of  young  men  of 
good  birth.  A  Norse  historian  remarks: 
"  Royal  youths  of  twelve  or  fifteen  years  often 
went  abroad  as  commanders  of  viking  fleets, 
in  order  to  test  their  manhood  and  accumulate 
experience  and  knowledge  of  men." 

During  the  third  period  they  no  longer  re- 
turned to  their  native  country  but  assumed  the 
role  of  conquerors  and  took  charge  of  the  com- 
merce and  the  government  of  the  cities  and 
provinces  which  they  vanquished.  The  de- 
scendants of  Rollo  and  his  vikings  in  Nor- 
mandy soon  lost  all  trace  of  their  connection 
with  rude  sea-kings;  and  the  refinement  and 
luxury  which  they  developed  were  in  striking 
contrast  to  the  manners  of  even  the  conquered 
Gauls.  In  a  comparatively  short  time  the  rude 
and  piratical  vikings  were  transformed  into 
the  chivalry  of  Norman  barons;  and  after  the 
Christian  conversion  of  the  fierce  worshippers 
of  Thor  and  Odin,  they  became  the  most  de- 
vout sons  and  defenders  of  the  Christian 
church,  and  their  ecclesiastical  and  castellated 
architecture  became  the  admiration  of  succeed- 
ing ages. 

The  speedy  amalgamation  of  the  vikings, 
with  customs  and  institutions  of  the  lands 


The  Viking  Age  21 

which  they  occupied,  is  one  of  the  striking  facts 
of  the  mediaeval  period.  Professor  Boyesen 
remarks  in  this  connection :  ' '  The  feudal  sys- 
tem which,  with  all  its  defects,  is  yet  the  indis- 
pensable basis  of  a  higher  civilization,  has  its 
roots  in  the  Germanic  instinct  of  loyalty  —  of 
mutual  allegiance  between  master  and  vassal; 
and  the  noble  spirit  of  independence  which  re- 
strains and  limits  the  power  of  the  ruler,  and 
at  a  later  stage  leads  to  constitutional  gov- 
ernment, is  even  a  more  distinctly  Norse  than 
Germanic  characteristic.  While  Norway  up 
under  the  pole  has  developed  a  democracy, 
Germany,  at  too  early  a  period,  has  developed 
a  military  despotism  under  constitutional 
forms." 

The  earliest  recorded  viking  expedition  was 
to  Sleswick  in  777,  although  piratical  fleets 
from  Norway  had  infested  the  North  and  the 
Baltic  seas  for  a  century  or  two  before  this 
date.  In  841  a  viking  expedition  sailed  up  the 
Loire  in  France,  burning  the  city  of  Amboise 
and  besieging  Tours.  About  the  same  time  an- 
other viking  crew  sailed  up  the  Seine  and 
burned  Beauvois  and  Eouen,  destroyed  the 
Fontenelle  monastery,  and  plundered  Paris. 
The  Ehine  was  likewise  entered  and  Dorsten, 


22  In  Viking  Land 

Nymegen,  and  other  towns  on  its  banks  were 
ravished.  At  an  even  earlier  date  (839)  a 
viking  fleet  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  ships 
spread  terror  and  desolation  along  the  coast 
of  Ireland  and  captured  the  city  of  Dublin, 
which  was  held  by  the  Norsemen  for  three  cen- 
turies. Scotland,  the  Orkneys,  the  Hebrides, 
and  the  Faroe  Islands  were  similarly  plun- 
dered and  ravaged. 

England  likewise  suffered  at  the  hands  of 
the  pirates  from  Norway.  In  787  a  band  of 
vikings  ravaged  the  coast  of  Dorchester  and 
seven  years  later  the  coast  of  Northumberland 
was  plundered.  Simeon  of  Durham,  a  twelfth 
century  chronicler,  writes  of  this  invasion: 
"  The  heathen  came  from  the  northern  coun- 
tries to  Britain  like  stinging  wasps,  roamed 
about  like  savage  wolves,  robbing,  biting,  kill- 
ing, not  only  horses,  sheep,  and  cattle,  but  also 
priests,  acolytes,  monks,  and  nuns.  They  went 
to  Lindesfarena  church,  destroying  everything 
in  the  most  miserable  manner,  and  trod  the 
sanctuary  with  their  profane  feet,  threw  down 
the  altars,  robbed  the  treasury  of  the  church, 
killed  some  of  the  brothers,  carried  others 
away  in  captivity,  mocked  many  and  flung  them 
away  naked,  and  threw  some  into  the  ocean." 


The  Viking  Age  23 

A  flood  of  light  has  been  thrown  on  the  man- 
ners, customs,  and  activities  of  the  vikings  by 
the  recent  discovery  of  three  ancient  grave- 
ships  —  at  Thune  in  Smaalene  in  1867,  at  Gok- 
stad  in  the  Sandef  jord  in  1880,  and  at  Oseberg 
near  Tonsberg  in  1903.  During  the  viking 
period  it  was  the  custom  to  bury  important 
personages  with  their  ships  and  their  belong- 
ings, much  after  the  fashion  of  the  burial  of 
Germanic  kings  with  their  war-steeds.  The  ex- 
traordinary preservation  of  the  recovered  vik- 
ing ships  is  probably  due  to  the  fact  that  they 
were  embedded  in  blue  potter's  clay.  These 
ships  are  a  feature  of  the  historical  museum 
of  the  University  of  Christiania.  All  three  are 
trim-looking  boats,  with  beautiful  lines,  and 
they  seem  admirably  adapted  both  for  speed 
and  sea-worthiness.  An  exact  replica  of  the 
Gokstad  ship  crossed  the  Atlantic  in  1893  and 
was  one  of  the  objects  of  interest  at  the 
World's  Columbian  Exposition  at  Chicago, 
thus  proving  that  such  hulls  must  have  been 
thoroughly  sea-worthy. 

The  Gokstad  viking  ship,  which  is  one  of  the 
lions  of  Christiania,  belongs  to  the  ninth  cen- 
tury. Its  length  from  stem  to  stern  is  172  feet, 
the  length  of  the  keel  66  feet,  the  breadth  16 


24  In  Viking  Land 

feet,  and  it  could  not  have  drawn  more  than 
three  feet  of  water.  Its  considerable  length  in 
proportion  to  its  width  must  have  made  it  a 
fast  sailer,  and  the  flat  bottom  must  have  made 
it  very  steady  at  sea.  It  is  built  of  clinch-oak 
sixteen  strakes  high,  and  the  seventeen  frames, 
which  are  about  three  feet  apart  on  the  keel, 
run  only  up  to  the  eleventh  strake,  where  the 
beams  are  joined  to  the  side  of  the  ship  by 
knees.  The  frames  are  not  fastened  to  the 
keel  but  are  bound  to  the  planking  with  the 
soft  roots  of  trees.  The  garboard  strake  is 
fastened  to  the  keel  with  iron  bolts  and  the 
seams  are  caulked  with  yarn  spun  from  cow's 
hair. 

The  Gokstad  ship  was  apparently  made  for 
both  sailing  and  rowing,  as  were  most  of  the 
viking  boats.  About  midship  there  is  a  keelson 
for  the  mast  to  which  a  large  square  sail  was 
attached  by  means  of  a  pulley.  There  are  six- 
teen openings  on  each  side  for  the  oars.  The 
rudder  was  placed  on  the  right  side,  whence 
"  starboard,"  or  steering  side.  It  has  been 
calculated  that  it  had  a  crew  of  forty  hands 
and  that  its  carrying  capacity  was  about  thirty 
tons.  The  fact  that  the  Gokstad  ship  gives 
such  marked  evidence  of  skilful  workmanship 


The  Viking  Age  25 

indicates  that  the  vikings  had  attained  a  high 
degree  of  efficiency  in  the  arts  and  crafts. 

By  the  side  of  the  ship  were  found  the  bones 
of  twelve  horses  and  six  dogs.  These  animals 
had  been  killed,  apparently,  that  they  might 
follow  their  master  to  the  next  world.  The 
wives  of  the  viking  chiefs  were  sometimes 
killed  and  placed  in  the  sepulchral  chamber 
with  their  masters.  Three  smaller  boats  were 
found  in  the  fore-hold  of  the  Gokstad  ship. 
They  are  from  fifteen  to  twenty-five  feet  long 
and  in  most  respects  they  resemble  the  boats 
used  to-day  in  Nordland.  Among  the  smaller 
articles  found  in  this  ship  were  some  wooden 
plates,  some  copper  cooking  utensils,  wooden 
spades,  and  sledges.  As  this  ship  had  been 
opened  and  plundered  it  is  safe  to  assume  that 
the  most  valuable  belongings  of  the  dead  viking 
had  been  removed. 

For  some  interesting  facts  on  the  manner  of 
burial  of  the  ancient  vikings  I  am  indebted 
to  Dr.  Ingvald  Undset.  When  a  viking  died,  a 
spot  for  his  burial  mound  was  chosen  near  the 
sea.  His  ship  was  drawn  upon  the  beach  by 
his  horses;  and,  with  the  stern  toward  the 
ocean,  it  was  partly  imbedded  in  potter's  clay. 
The  sepulchral  chamber  was  then  built  of  tim- 


26  In  Viking  Land 

ber  and  the  dead  man,  dressed  in  his  best 
clothes,  with  his  weapons  and  other  valuable 
possessions,  was  placed  therein.  The  chamber 
was  then  covered  with  birch  bark.  His  horses 
and  his  dogs  were  killed  and  placed  by  the  side 
of  the  ship,  only  his  peacock  —  a  memento  of 
the  dead  viking's  foreign  travels  —  had  a  place 
in  the  ship  itself.  Then  the  whole  of  the  ship 
was  covered  with  potter's  clay,  with  a  layer 
of  moss  or  twigs  on  the  top,  upon  which  the 
mound  was  raised. 

Of  even  greater  interest  is  the  Oseberg  ship 
which  was  discovered  in  1903  and  placed  in  the 
University  grounds  at  Christiania  the  past 
year  (1907).  The  ship  is  entirely  of  oak  and 
the  timbers  have  kept  so  well  that  in  the  dam- 
aged portions  of  the  boat  it  was  possible  to 
steam  them  and  bend  them  back  into  their 
original  shape.  The  Oseberg  ship  is  about  70 
feet,  6  inches  long  and  16  feet,  6  inches  broad. 
The  sepulchral  chamber  is  in  the  middle,  as  in 
the  Gokstad  ship,  but  much  more  solidly  built. 
The  ship  is  flat  bottomed,  has  a  fine  sheer,  but 
it  was  not  built  for  long  voyages.  Its  general 
structure  indicates  that  it  must  have  been  a 
pleasure  boat  for  use  in  the  fjords  and  in  the 
land-locked  waters.  The  ship  is  highly  orna- 


A    MODERN    NORDLAND    BOAT. 


THE    OSEBFRG    SHIP. 


The  Viking  Age  27 

merited  and  the  abundance  of  ornamental  ob- 
jects which  it  contained  illustrate  the  art  de- 
velopment of  the  viking  period.  The  sepul- 
chral chamber  contained  the  skeletons  of  two 
persons,  both  women.  Professor  Gustafson 
infers  that  one  was  a  Norse  woman  of  distinc- 
tion and  the  other  a  maid-servant  who  was 
forced  to  accompany  her  mistress  in  death. 

All  sorts  of  feminine  appliances  were  found 
in  the  Oseberg  ship  from  weaving  looms  and 
spinning  machines  to  balls  of  thread  and  wax. 
Buried  with  the  ship  were  a  four-wheeled 
vehicle,  sledges,  several  beds,  barge-boards,  a 
millstone,  kitchen  utensils,  and  oak  chests, 
which  contained  decayed  textiles,  quilts,  pil- 
lows, etc.  There  was  a  round  staff  with  runes 
carved  on  it,  a  well-preserved  anchor,  and  other 
articles  of  the  ship's  furniture.  The  skeletons 
of  horses,  oxen,  and  dogs  were  found  beside 
the  ship.  The  Oseberg  viking  boat  belongs  to 
about  the  year  800  and  is  thus  eleven  hundred 
years  old. 


CHAPTER   III 

UNDER    THE    OLD    NORSE     KINGS 

Norway  one  of  the  oldest  sovereign  states  —  Viking  age  the 
beginning  of  recorded  history  —  The  first  Olaf  —  Harald  the 
Fair-Haired  —  Norse  colonization  —  Haakon  the  Good  the 
first  Christian  king  —  Harald  Grayfell  and  his  brothers  — 
Earl  Haakon  and  paganism  —  The  romantic  career  of  Olaf 
Trygvesson  —  Adoption  of  Christianity  —  Discovery  and 
settlement  of  North  America  —  Picturesque  career  of  Olaf 
the  Saint  —  Consequences  of  a  vigorous  policy  —  Magnus 
the  Good  and  Harald  the  Hard-Ruler  —  Olaf  the  Quiet  and 
the  arts  of  peace  —  Magnus  the  Bare-Leg  and  the  Scotch 
islands  —  The  illegitimate  sons  of  Magnus  —  Eyestein  and 
industrial  development  —  A  century  of  strife  —  The  Birch- 
legs  and  the  triumph  of  the  peasants  —  Sverre  Sigurdsson, 
Norway's  greatest  king  — Haakon  Haakonsson  the  Old  —  A 
succession  of  weak  rulers  —  The  Hanseatic  league  —  The 
"  Black  Death  "  —  Union  with  Denmark  and  Sweden. 

Norway  is  one  of  the  oldest  sovereign  states 
in  Europe.  When  Harald  the  Fair-Haired 
(872)  overcame  the  numerous  earls  and  king- 
lets of  the  country  and  federated  them  into  the 
Norse  kingdom,  Alfred  the  Great  had  occupied 
the  throne  of  England  less  than  a  year ;  Eussia 
was  merely  a  principality;  the  recently  organ- 
ized Holy  Eoman  Empire  was  already  going 
to  pieces;  Denmark  was,  however,  in  existence 

28 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings        29 

and  shares  with  England  the  primacy  among 
the  nations  of  Europe  that  have  had  an  un- 
broken history  of  more  than  a  thousand  years. 

Before  the  historic  period  Norse  history  is 
largely  traditional.  It  was  not  until  the  North- 
men "  broke  like  a  destructive  tempest  over 
civilized  lands,  spreading  destruction  in  their 
path,"  that  the  country  came  to  have  a  recog- 
nized place  in  authentic  history.  According  to 
the  "  Sagas  of  the  Norse  Kings  "  the  earliest 
rulers  of  the  land  traced  their  ancestry  to  the 
god  Frey.  For  many  years  Norway  was 
divided  among  a  number  of  earls  or  kinglets 
who  governed  mutually  independent  tribes, 
took  command  in  local  wars,  and  directed  the 
worship  of  the  gods.  Each  tribe  made  its  own 
laws  and  settled  its  own  disputes.  Fjone,  Aun, 
Anund,  and  Ingjald  are  the  names  of  some  of 
the  early  rulers.  The  first  earldom  originated 
in  the  Trondhjem  fjord,  where  eight  tribes 
were  federated  with  a  common  worship  and 
administration  of  justice. 

The  first  Olaf,  son  of  Ingjald,  ruled  during 
the  middle  of  the  seventh  century.  He  was 
succeeded  by  Halfdan,  the  White-Leg,  who  aug- 
mented his  earldom  by  the  conquest  of  the 
fertile  Vestfold  district  in  the  Christiania 


30 In  Viking  Land 

fjord.  Godfrey  the  Hunter  and  Halfdan  the 
Swarthy  follow  the  line  of  viking  rulers.  Earl 
Halfdan  was  a  man  of  great  intelligence  and 
gave  the  people  a  code  of  laws  which  did  much 
to  unify  the  southern  districts  of  Norway. 

From  the  time  of  Harald  the  Fair-Haired 
(860)  the  records  of  Norwegian  history  are 
a  trifle  more  authentic.  He  forced  the  earls 
in  the  northern  provinces  to  acknowledge  his 
over-lordship,  but  in  their  own  provinces  he 
permitted  them  to  administer  justice,  collect 
taxes,  and  maintain  petty  armies  subject  to  his 
command.  The  system  of  land-tenure  was 
changed,  the  peasants  being  deprived  of  their 
farms,  and  all  land  was  declared  the  property 
of  the  king.  He  likewise  introduced  a  personal 
tax,  which  the  peasants  derisively  nicknamed 
the  "  nose  tax;  "  but  during  his  long  reign  of 
sixty  years  he  made  for  Norway  a  large  place 
on  the  map  of  Europe. 

It  was  during  the  reign  of  Harald  the  Fair- 
Haired  (860-930)  that  Norse  colonization,  re- 
lated in  the  previous  chapter,  attained  such 
great  activity.  The  Norsemen  went  in  consid- 
erable numbers  to  Iceland,  the  Faroe  Islands, 
the  Hebrides,  the  Orkney  and  Shetland  Isles, 
England,  Ireland,  France,  Italy,  and  America. 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings         31 

Sea-robbery  was  strictly  forbidden  by  Harald 
in  his  own  kingdom,  but  against  foreign  coun- 
tries the  ravages  of  the  vikings  were  regarded 
as  thoroughly  legitimate  and  as  occupations 
becoming  for  warriors  and  gentlemen. 

The  sons  of  Harald  were  contentious  and 
they  did  not  make  it  easy  for  him  to  hold  his 
throne.  He  had  a  very  large  family,  for  he  led 
a  loose  sort  of  life,  but  the  best  of  his  male 
heirs  sailed  away  to  France,  England,  and  Italy 
to  make  their  fortunes.  Eric  the  Blood-Axe 
(930-935),  while  an  accomplished  sea-rover, 
ruled  less  wisely  than  his  father.  By  an  unfor- 
tunate marriage,  says  a  chronicler,  "  he  weak- 
ened all  that  was  good  in  him  and  strengthened 
all  that  was  bad."  He  was  deposed  by 
his  youngest  brother,  Haakon  the  Good  (935- 
961),  who  had  been  carefully  brought  up 
by  King  Athelstan  of  England.  The  first 
of  the  Haakons  well  deserves  his  sir  name,  for 
he  was  not  only  a  brilliant  and  successful  ruler, 
but  also  a  good  king.  He  greatly  improved  the 
laws  and  the  military  affairs  of  his  kingdom; 
and  he  published  a  decree  in  950  abolishing  the 
old  faith  and  forbidding  sacrifice  to  its  gods. 
He  had  embraced  Christianity  in  England  and 
he  imported  a  bishop  and  some  priests  from 


32  In  Viking  Land 

that  country  to  teach  his  people  the  new  faith. 
The  opposition  to  the  Christian  religion,  how- 
ever, was  very  pronounced;  and,  at  a  confer- 
ence of  the  peasants  held  at  Trondhjem,  it  be- 
came apparent  to  the  king  that  it  would  be  folly 
to  attempt  to  give  force  to  his  decree.  His 
subjects  assured  him  of  their  loyalty  and  good 
will,  but  they  made  it  clear  that  they  did  not 
intend  to  give  up  the  gods  of  their  fathers. 
Much  against  his  wishes,  but  in  order  to  ap- 
pease his  heathen  subjects,  Haakon  partici- 
pated in  their  sacrifices  and  presided  at 
their  sacrificial  feast.  Having  been  mortally 
wounded  in  a  battle  with  the  Danes,  one  of  his 
faithful  followers  offered  to  take  his  body  to 
England  where  it  would  receive  a  Christian 
burial ;  but  the  dying  king  made  reply :  ' '  Hav- 
ing lived  like  a  heathen,  it  is  meet  that  I  should 
be  buried  like  a  heathen."  And  in  heathen 
fashion  he  was  buried.  Snorre  Sturlasson,  the 
Icelandic  historian,  tells  us  that  the  sorrow  at 
his  death  was  great  and  universal.  "  He  was 
lamented  by  both  friends  and  enemies,  and  they 
said  that  never  again  would  Norway  see  such 
a  king." 

Haakon  the  Good  having  died  without  male 
issue,  Harald  Grayfell  and  his  brothers  (961- 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings        33 

970),  sons  of  Eric  the  Blood-Axe  and  the 
wicked  Gunhild,  took  charge  of  the  kingdom. 
But  as  they  had  been  reared  in  Denmark,  they 
filled  their  court  with  Danish  warriors,  and 
took  no  pains  to  win  the  favour  of  their  Nor- 
wegian subjects.  Their  mother,  too,  egged 
them  on  to  cruel  and  treacherous  deeds,  and 
they  soon  forfeited  the  loyalty  of  their  people 
and  lost  their  crown.  The  fact  that  they  had 
been  baptized  and  brought  up  in  the  Christian 
faith  and  that  they  refrained  from  sacrifices  to 
the  heathen  gods,  augmented  the  unpopularity 
due  to  their  misgovernment,  and  they  were  by 
common  consent  deposed. 

Earl  Haakon  (970-995),  who  followed  with 
a  long  and  relatively  prosperous  reign,  was  the 
last  royal  champion  of  paganism  in  Norway. 
He  was  a  zealous  pagan,  but  in  an  unequal 
struggle  with  Denmark  and  Germany,  he  was 
defeated  and  was  forced  to  submit  to  Christian 
baptism  and  to  consent  to  the  introduction  of 
the  new  faith  in  his  kingdom.  Departing  from 
Copenhagen  with  a  ship  load  of  priests,  he  had 
not  proceeded  many  miles  when  he  put  the 
priests  ashore  and  made  a  grand  sacrificial 
feast  to  overcome  the  effect  of  his  recent  bap- 
tism. He  was  a  great  church  builder,  remarks 


34  In  Viking  Land 

the  old  chronicler,  having  repaired  many  hea- 
then temples,  manufactured  many  splendid 
idols,  with  much  gilding  and  artistic  ornament, 
-in  particular  one  huge  image  of  Thor,  not 
forgetting  the  hammer  and  appendages,  as  was 
never  seen  before  in  all  Norway.  A  modern 
Norse  historian  pays  the  second  Haakon  this 
tribute :  ' ;  He  was  a  man  of  great  natural  en- 
dowment, fearless  yet  prudent,  formidable  in 
battle,  and  in  his  earlier  years  justly  popular 
for  his  kindliness  and  liberality.  Morally,  he 
was,  barring  the  profligacy  of  his  later  days,  a 
legitimate  product  of  the  old  Germanic  pagan- 
ism and  the  conditions  of  life  which  must  of 
necessity  prevail  in  a  militant  community. " 

The  career  of  Olaf  Trygvesson  (995-1000) 
although  brief,  was  in  some  respects  the  most 
romantic  in  Norse  history.  He  was  a  scion  of 
the  race  of  Harald  the  Fair-Haired,  who  as  an 
infant  had  been  taken  by  his  mother  first  to 
Sweden  and  later  to  Eussia  to  escape  the  mur- 
derous decrees  first  of  the  wicked  Gunhild  and 
then  of  Earl  Haakon.  The  ship  in  which  the 
young  prince  and  his  mother  took  passage  for 
Eussia  was  captured  by  vikings  and  they  were 
both  sold  into  slavery.  After  six  years  of  ser- 
vitude in  Esthonia  Olaf 's  identity  was  discov- 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings        35 

ered,  and  he  was  taken  to  the  court  of  Russia, 
where  he  was  educated.  He  was  trained  in  the 
use  of  arms,  athletic  sports,  and  other  matters 
proper  in  the  education  of  the  son  of  a  king; 
and  in  early  manhood  he  served  for  several 
years  in  a  naval  capacity  in  one  of  the  Baltic 
provinces  of  Russia.  At  the  age  of  twenty-one 
years  he  journeyed  to  Greece,  where  he  was 
baptized  according  to  the  Christian  rite,  after 
which,  in  search  of  more  adventure,  he  visited 
in  succession  France,  Denmark,  Scotland,  and 
England.  The  Anglo-Saxon  annals  tell  us  that 
in  994,  with  a  great  viking  fleet,  he  ravaged  the 
south  coast  of  England  and  that  King  Ethelred 
II.  was  forced  to  pay  him  ten  thousand  pounds 
as  immunity  from  further  depredations.  With 
the  downfall  of  Earl  Haakon  in  995,  he  was 
proclaimed  the  rightful  sovereign  of  Norway 
and  was  crowned  at  Trondhjem. 

King  Olaf  was  by  nature  admirably  adapted 
for  the  great  task  which  fell  to  him  —  the  es- 
tablishment of  Christianity  in  Norway.  He 
was  zealous  for  the  new  faith  and  uncompro- 
mising in  his  opposition  to  the  old  religion. 
Like  Charlemagne,  the  king  of  the  Franks,  he 
did  not  hesitate  to  use  the  sword  and  fire  when 
more  gentle  means  were  of  no  avail.  "  He 


36  In  Viking  Land 

wasted  no  time  in  weighing  the  probabilities 
of  success  or  failure,"  says  a  Norse  historian, 
"  but,  in  the  conviction  of  the  sanctity  of  his 
cause,  stormed  resistlessly  onward,  and,  by  his 
impetuosity  and  ardour,  bore  down  all  oppo- 
sition." Nominally,  at  least,  he  made  the  Nor- 
wegians Christians.  Many,  however,  while  pub- 
licly renouncing  the  old  religion  and  accepting 
baptism,  continued  privately  to  make  sacrifices. 
The  Christian  priests  themselves,  we  are  told, 
professed  belief  in  Odin  and  Thor,  but  repre- 
sented them  as  evil  powers  who  had  been  con- 
quered by  Christ.  Paganism  was  more  per- 
sistent in  the  northern  than  in  the  southern 
provinces,  but  when  the  first  Olaf  met  his  death 
in  1000,  the  new  faith  was  on  a  tolerably  sound 
footing  in  the  Norse  kingdom. 

Eric  and  Svein  Haakonsson  (1000-1015), 
sons  of  Earl.  Haakon,  succeeded  King  Olaf. 
Perhaps  the  most  significant  event  of  their 
reign  was  the  discovery  of  the  North  American 
continent  by  Leif,  son  of  Eric  the  Eed,  an  ad- 
venturous Norwegian  viking.  An  Icelander  in 
a  voyage  to  Greenland  had  been  blown  from  his 
course  in  a  storm  and  had  visited  a  coast  that 
had  no  glaciers.  Assuming  that  this  coast  must 
be  some  new  land,  Leif,  with  a  crew  of  thirty- 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings         37 

five  men,  sailed  for  the  undiscovered  west  in 
the  year  1000.  That  he  discovered  the  conti- 
nent of  North  America  nearly  five  hundred 
years  before  the  time  of  Christopher  Columbus 
is  now  an  accepted  historic  fact.  The  coast  of 
Massachusetts  is  supposed  to  be  the  part  of 
the  country  where  Leif  and  his  men  landed  and 
spent  the  winter.  The  statement,  that  the  sun 
rose  in  this  region  on  the  shortest  day  of  the 
year  at  half-past  seven  and  set  at  half-past 
four,  indicating  a  latitude  of  41°,  24'  and  10", 
has  led  geographers  to  conclude  that  the  party 
must  have  landed  in  the  region  of  Cape  Cod  or 
the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Fall  Eiver.  Be- 
cause of  the  abundance  of  grapes  they  named 
the  new  country  Vineland. 

A  second  expedition  to  Vineland,  numbering 
one  hundred  and  six  persons,  under  an  Ice- 
landic explorer,  was  organized  in  1006  with  the 
intention  of  establishing  a  permanent  Norse 
colony  in  the  new  world;  but  the  hostility  of 
the  strange  natives,  who  came  to  them  in 
"  light  boats  made  of  skin,"  the  massacre  of 
a  number  of  the  colonists,  and  the  perpetual 
state  of  insecurity  disheartened  the  surviving 
Norsemen ;  and,  after  a  sojourn  of  a  little  less 


38  In  Viking  Land 

than  three  years,  they  determined  to  return  to 
their  old  homes. 

If  Olaf  Trygvesson  is  the  most  romantic  fig- 
ure in  Norse  history,  Olaf  Haraldsson  is  the 
most  picturesque.  During  his  life-time  he  was 
called  Olaf  the  Thick-Set,  but  after  his  death 
and  canonization  Olaf  the  Saint.  He  ruled  Nor- 
way with  an  iron  hand  for  fourteen  years  ( 1016- 
1030).  The  country  was  in  bad  condition;  the 
laws  had  been  laxly  administered;  national 
taxes  had  been  usurped  by  the  lesser  nobility; 
the  earls  were  in  a  chronic  state  of  insubordi- 
nation; and  the  Christian  religion,  which  had 
been  formally  adopted,  had  not  displaced 
paganism  in  the  hearts  of  the  people.  On  land 
they  worshipped  the  god  of  the  Christians,  but 
at  sea  Thor,  "  whom  they  considered  safer  in 
that  element."  The  strong  arm  and  the  clear 
brain  of  a  really  great  king  not  only  placed 
Christianity  on  a  firm  basis  but  gave  the  king- 
dom of  Norway  an  international  prominence 
which  it  had  not  hitherto  enjoyed.  The  ad- 
ministration of  justice  was  reformed,  abuses 
in  the  misappropriation  of  taxes  corrected,  and 
the  scattered  and  rebellious  earls  federated 
into  a  strong  and  unified  kingdom. 

In  spite  of  a  mockish  piety  which  the  legends 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings         39 

of  later  times  have  associated  with  the  name  of 
the  second  Olaf,  he  seems  to  have  been  su- 
premely human  in  character  and  conduct  and 
eminently  sane  and  practical  in  the  adminis- 
tration of  governmental  affairs.  Professor 
Boyesen  adds  in  this  connection :  * '  He  was,  in 
spite  of  his  later  sainthood,  a  strong-willed, 
ambitious,  and  worldly-wise  man;  far-seeking 
in  his  plans,  business-like  in  his  methods,  re- 
lentless in  his  hates,  ruthless  in  his  punish- 
ments. His  severity,  which  the  sagas  comment 
upon,  was  never  wanton,  but  was  in  proportion 
to  the  magnitude  of  the  offence.  Robbers, 
thieves,  and  vikings,  who  plundered  within  the 
land,  he  punished  with  death,  no  matter 
whether  their  birth  was  high  or  low;  because 
the  extirpation  of  the  old  predatory  spirit,  with 
its  internecine  feuds,  was  the  first  condition 
for  the  establishment  of  a  united  nationality." 
The  brief  reign  of  Svend  Alfifasson  (1030- 
1035)  was  inconsequential.  Magnus  Olafsson, 
known  in  Norse  history  as  Magnus  the  Good 
(1035-1047),  was  an  illegitimate  son  of  Olaf 
the  Saint.  According  to  one  authority  his 
mother  was  the  queen's  laundress;  according 
to  another  she  was  an  English  woman  of  gentle 
birth;  but  illegitimacy  was  so  common  at  the 


40  In  Viking  Land 

time  that  it  was  no  barrier  to  political  prefer- 
ment. By  inheritance  Magnus  also  became 
king  of  Denmark  during  the  last  five  years  of 
his  reign.  He  died  at  the  early  age  of  twenty- 
four  and  the  only  remaining  descendant  in  the 
male  line  was  Harald  Sigurdsson,  a  half- 
brother  of  Olaf  the  Saint.  He  acquired  the 
title  of  Harald  the  Hard-Ruler  (1047-1066). 

Harald  made  it  the  business  of  his  reign  to 
break  the  power  of  the  tribal  aristocracy  and 
to  centralize  all  authority  in  the  king.  The 
ruthlessness  with  which  he  carried  out  his  pro- 
gram won  for  him  the  surname  of  tyrant  or 
hard-hearted.  In  the  "  Sagas  of  the  Norse 
Kings  "  this  tribute  is  paid  him:  "  He  was  ex- 
tremely intelligent,  so  that  all  men  are  agreed 
that  there  has  never  been  a  more  intelligent 
king  in  the  North.  Moreover,  he  was  an  ex- 
cellent swordsman,  strong  and  skilled  in  the  art 
of  war,  and  altogether  a  man  who  knew  how  to 
accomplish  his  purpose."  It  may  be  added 
that  he  was  keenly  interested  in  poetry  and 
letters  and  that  he  customarily  abbreviated  his 
sleep  periods  that  he  might  have  more  time  to 
listen  to  the  recitals  of  his  blind  Icelandic  scald. 
He  tried  to  conquer  England,  but  fell  at  Stan- 
ford Bridge  shortly  before  the  Norman  con- 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings         41 

quest  in  1066.  "  In  spite  of  the  discontent  of 
the  chiefs,"  says  a  Norse  historian,  "  Norway 
took  great  strides  during  his  reign  towards  a 
settled  internal  condition.  The  tribes  were 
welded  into  a  people,  and  in  every  branch  of 
administration  the  king's  strong  hand  was  felt. 
His  wars,  though  in  one  sense  disastrous, 
tended,  on  the  whole,  to  give  Norway  a  secure 
place  among  the  nations. ' ' 

Olaf  the  Quiet  (1066-1093)  differed  in  all 
respects  from  his  predecessors.  The  sagas  tell 
us  that  he  was  "  a  slim-built,  witty-talking, 
popular  and  pretty  man,  with  uncommonly 
bright  eyes  and  hair  like  floss  silk  "  but  that 
his  rule  was  soft  and  gentle.  He  cultivated  the 
arts  of  peace  and  devoted  his  energies  to  the 
intellectual  improvement  of  his  people.  It  is 
indicative  of  the  spirit  of  the  times  that  his- 
torians, whose  highest  ideals  consisted  in  war 
and  the  slaughter  of  human  beings,  have  only 
a  few  pages  for  the  long  reign  of  a  king  who 
11  inclined  rather  to  improvement  in  the  arts 
and  elegancies  than  to  anything  severe  or  dan- 
gerously laborious." 

Magnus  the  Bare-Leg  (1093-1103),  seeing 
that  the  conquest  of  England  was  altogether 
impossible,  devoted  his  energies  to  the  amal- 


42  In  Viking  Land 

gamation  of  the  Orkneys,  the  Hebrides  and  his 
other  Scotch  possessions.  After  one  of  his 
expeditions  to  Scotland  he  appeared  upon  the 
streets  of  Trondhjem  in  a  Highland  costume, 
"  the  authentic  tartan  plaid  and  philibeg  of 
that  epoch,"  and  his  subjects,  not  accustomed 
to  the  kilts  of  Scotland,  nicknamed  him  the 
bare-leg.  In  an  unsuccessful  effort  to  conquer 
Ireland,  he  was  defeated  by  King  Murdog  of 
that  country  and  was  killed  in  a  battle  fought 
near  Connaught. 

Three  illegitimate  sons  of  Magnus  were  de- 
clared rulers  of  Norway;  and,  oddly  enough, 
they  reigned  peacefully  together.  Eyestein 
(1103-1122)  was  fourteen  years  old  when  his 
father  was  killed,  Sigurd  the  Crusader  (1103- 
1130)  was  thirteen,  and  Olaf  Magnusson  (1103- 
1115)  was  four.  As  this  was  the  period  of  the 
crusade  movement,  when  Europe  was  waging 
a  holy  war  for  plunder  and  for  fame  against 
the  unbelievers,  Sigurd  with  a  fleet  of  sixty 
ships  and  ten  thousand  men  sailed  away  to  the 
Holy  Land  and  took  the  strongly  fortified  city 
of  Sidon  which  had  hitherto  defied  the  efforts 
of  the  crusaders. 

In  striking  contrast  to  his  brother,  Eyestein 
remained  quietly  at  home  building  churches, 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings         43 

encouraging  commerce,  developing  local  indus- 
tries, and  improving  the  laws  of  the  land.  He 
caused  primitive  light-houses  to  be  erected 
along  the  dangerous  western  coast;  reorgan- 
ized the  fisheries  and  made  them  a  source  of 
national  wealth;  built  taverns  on  the  high 
Doverfjeld  plateau  to  facilitate  travel,  and 
erected  important  churches  at  Bergen,  Trond- 
hjem,  and  elsewhere.  Olaf  died  in  1115  and  at 
the  death  of  Eyestein  in  1122  Sigurd  was  left 
sole  ruler  of  the  kingdom;  but  he  had  under- 
mined his  health  in  youthful  dissipations,  and 
his  closing  years  were  darkened  by  mental 
illness. 

A  century  of  strife  followed  the  death  of 
Sigurd.  This  was  caused  by  the  claims  of  a 
long  line  of  descendants  of  former  kings  — 
some  legitimate  but  many  born  out  of  wedlock. 
The  parliament  at  Christiania  —  then  called 
Oslo  — placed  Magnus  the  Blind  (1130-1135), 
a  son  of  Sigurd,  on  the  throne;  but  a  son  of 
Magnus  the  Bare-Leg  by  an  Irish  woman  came 
to  Norway  and  laid  claim  to  half  the  kingdom. 
This  was  Harald  Gille  (1130-1136).  In  the 
strife  that  followed  he  defeated  Magnus,  put 
his  eyes  out,  cut  off  one  of  his  legs,  and  sub- 
jected him  to  still  more  revolting  mutilations. 


44  In  Viking  Land 

Neither  Magnus  nor  Harald  had  kingly  quali- 
ties. The  former  was  "  a  coarse,  avaricious, 
and  arrogant  royster,  addicted  to  drink  and 
incapable  of  any  noble  impulse,"  and  the  lat- 
ter "  a  weak  and  vacillating  man,  jolly,  lib- 
eral, and  easy  going,  in  whom  the  Irish  char- 
acteristics predominated. ' ' 

The  unworthy  Harald,  however,  did  not  live 
long  to  enjoy  his  ill-gotten  kingdom.  Sigurd 
the  Bad-Priest,  another  reputed  illegitimate 
son  of  Magnus  the  Bare-Leg,  arrived  in  Nor- 
way during  the  summer  of  1136.  He  had  led 
an  adventurous  life  in  the  Orkneys ;  had  visited 
Rome  and  the  Holy  Land,  and  had  taken  orders 
for  the  priesthood.  In  an  attempt  which 
Harald  made  on  the  life  of  Sigurd  the  king 
was  killed.  Sigurd  then  called  together  the 
leading  men  and  asked  them  to  make  him  king ; 
but  contrary  to  expectations,  the  deed  caused 
keen  indignation,  he  was  forced  to  flee,  and 
Harald 's  sons  ruled  Norway  for  twenty-four 
years  (1137-1161). 

Sigurd,  the  younger,  was  only  five  years  old 
when  his  father  was  killed  and  Inge  less  than 
two.  But  the  national  assembly  recognized 
them  as  the  rightful  rulers.  Norway,  however, 
continued  disturbed  by  the  frequent  arrival  of 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings         45 

illegitimate  claimants  from  Scotland,  Ireland, 
and  elsewhere,  and  later  by  the  unbrotherly 
feuds  of  Sigurd  and  Inge.  In  1155  Sigurd  was 
surprised  in  his  house  and  slain  by  a  conspira- 
tor of  Inge,  but  no  one  mourned  his  death.  On 
the  contrary,  "  men  whose  wives  he  had  in- 
sulted, eager  for  vengeance,  ran  his  body 
through  with  their  swords."  He  was  only 
twenty-one  years  old  at  the  time  of  his  death, 
but  he  left  behind  a  long  line  of  pretenders  who 
claimed  him  as  their  father  and  who  disturbed 
the  peace  of  Norway  for  more  than  half  a  cen- 
tury. 

Inge  lost  his  life  in  the  civil  wars,  and 
Haakon  Sigurdsson,  called  Haakon  the  Broad- 
Shoulders  (1161-1162),  ruled  but  eighteen 
months  and  was  followed  by  Magnus  Erlings- 
son  (1162-1184).  During  this  period  the  clergy 
appear  as  dominant  factors  in  the  political  life 
of  Norway.  At  a  meeting  held  at  Bergen  a 
change  was  made  in  the  fundamental  law  of 
the  land.  The  crown  of  Norway  was  declared 
the  property  and  heritage  of  Olaf  the  Saint, 
and  at  the  death  of  the  reigning  king  the  bish- 
ops were  empowered  to  name  his  successor 
from  among  the  heirs  born  in  wedlock. 

The  next  claimant  to  disturb  the  quiet  of 


46  In  Viking  Land 

King  Magnus  and  the  clergy  was  one  Eyestein, 
a  reputed  grandson  of  Harald  Gille.  During 
the  century  of  civil  strife,  a  ragged  and  inco- 
herent army  had  been  formed  among  the  peas- 
ants, and  these  soldiers  of  fortune,  always  with 
an  eye  on  possible  plunder,  had  generally  given 
their  aid  to  the  pretender  that  promised  most. 
They  wore  birch-bark  for  shoes  and  were  de- 
risively called  the  "  Birchlegs."  They  were 
ill  fed,  ill  trained,  and  ill  equipped;  but,  adds 
a  historian  of  the  period,  "  the  discipline  of 
hardship  and  danger  which  their  arduous  lives 
had  imposed  upon  them  stood  them  in  good 
stead;  and,  insignificant  as  they  were  in  num- 
bers, they  were  not  a  foe  to  be  despised." 
Eyestein  and  his  Birchlegs  were,  however, 
overwhelmingly  defeated  in  1176  and  the  pre- 
tender was  slain. 

Magnus  did  not  long  enjoy  his  triumph.  A 
year  later  there  came  to  Norway  from  the 
Faroe  islands  one  Sverre  Sigurdsson,  a  re- 
puted son  of  King  Sigurd  and  a  Scotch  do- 
mestic,- and  he  laid  claim  to  his  alleged 
heritage.  With  the  aid  of  the  Birchlegs  he 
waged  for  seven  years  a  fierce  guerilla  war 
against  the  combined  royal  and  clerical  forces, 
with  all  the  odds  against  him,  but  he  won  in  the 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings         47 

end.  The  contest  was  not  merely  the  struggle 
of  the  rightful  heir  to  the  Norse  throne  to  hold 
his  seat  against  the  doubtful  claims  of  a  pre- 
tender. It  was,  as  Munk  has  pointed  out,  a 
struggle  between  the  representatives  of  the  old 
order  of  things  —  a  monarchy  deriving  its 
power  and  support  from  a  privileged  aristoc- 
racy—  and  the  lower  orders  of  society  —  an 
uncouth  and  hungry  democracy  demanding  its 
share  of  the  good  things  of  life.  The  final 
struggle  took  place  in  the  Naero  fjord  in  1184, 
when  the  king,  the  proud  earls,  and  the  flower 
of  Norse  aristocracy  were  sacrificed  in  the  vain 
attempt  to  preserve  the  old  order. 

It  was  the  unconscious  working  of  these 
forces  combined  with  the  dogged  energy  of 
William  of  Orange  and  the  military  genius  of 
Napoleon  that  finally  placed  Sverre  Sigurds- 
son  (1184-1202)  on  the  Norwegian  throne.  Be- 
ing a  statesman  and  a  man  of  honour,  rather 
than  a  politician,  he  kept  his  promises  with  the 
Birchlegs.  Men  of  low  birth  were  given  im- 
portant posts;  fidelity  and  valour  were  re- 
warded, and  Norse  society  was  entirely  reor- 
ganized on  a  democratic  basis. 

The  vanquished  earls  and  dissatisfied  clergy 
were  not,  however,  silenced  by  defeat;  they 


48  In  Viking  Land 

continued  the  civil  war  during  the  eighteen 
years  that  Sverre  reigned,  but  the  great  king 
died  unconquered.  He  was  undoubtedly,  as 
Professor  Boyesen  has  affirmed,  "  the  greatest 
king  who  has  ever  ruled  over  Norway.  A 
bright,  clear,  and  resolute  spirit  dwelt  within 
his  small  frame.  His  presence  of  mind  and 
his  wonderful  fertility  of  resources  saved  him 
out  of  the  most  desperate  situations.  Firm- 
ness and  gentleness  were  admirably  united  in 
his  character.  A  clear-sighted  policy,  based 
upon  expediency  as  well  as  upon  conviction, 
governed  his  actions  from  the  beginning  of  his 
reign  to  the  end.  He  possessed  the  faculty  of 
attaching  men  to  him,  even  when  he  punished 
them  and  restrained  their  lawless  passions. 
Though  he  did  not  possess  the  beauty  nor  the 
magnificent  physical  presence  of  the  earlier 
kings  of  Norway,  he  knew  how  to  inspire  re- 
spect as  well  as  love." 

Sverre 's  son,  Haakon  Sverresson  (1202- 
1204),  during  his  brief  reign  made  peace  with 
the  church  without  loss  of  dignity;  for  the 
bishops,  weary  of  their  long  years  of  exile  and 
dependence  upon  foreign  bounty,  were  glad 
to  return  to  their  benefices.  Guthorm  Sigurds- 
son  (1204),  who  succeeded  Haakon,  lived  less 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings        49 

than  a  year,  and  he  was  followed  by  Inge 
Baardsson  (1204-1217). 

Haakon  Haakonsson  the  Old  (1217-1263),  a 
grandson  of  King  Sverre,  followed  with  a  long 
and  prosperous  reign.  He  crushed  the  rebel- 
lious factions  raised  by  the  clergy  and  slew 
the  last  of  the  claimants  they  supported.  Like 
his  illustrious  grandfather  he  was  a  great  king, 
although  his  career  was  less  brilliant.  He  was 
possessed  of  great  good  sense  and  was  a  thor- 
oughly safe  ruler;  firm  and  resolute  when 
justice  demanded  severity,  he  was  supremely 
strong  in  the  art  of  forgiving.  Iceland  and 
Greenland  were  more  closely  federated  with 
Norway  during  his  reign.  Pope  Alexander  IV 
urged  his  election  as  emperor  of  Germany  and 
Louis  IX  of  France,  in  view  of  his  great  ex- 
perience on  the  seas,  offered  him  the  command 
of  one  of  his  crusades  to  the  Holy  Land.  Dis- 
turbances which  had  broken  out  between  Alex- 
ander III,  king  of  Scotland,  and  Haakon 's  sub- 
jects in  the  Orkneys  called  him  hither,  where  he 
died  in  1263. 

With  the  reign  of  Magnus  the  Law-Mender 
(1263-1280)  there  began  a  gradual  decline  in 
Norway  which  culminated  in  the  Kalmar  union 
a,  century  later  and  the  virtual  loss  of  Norse 


50  In  Viking  Land 

independence.  The  differences  with  Alexander 
III  were  terminated  by  ceding  the  Isle  of  Man 
and  the  Shetland  islands  to  Scotland  for  four 
thousand  marks  sterling  and  an  annual  tribute 
of  one  hundred  marks.  Magnus  devoted  his 
energies  to  matters  of  legislation,  improvement 
of  the  economic  conditions  of  the  rural  dis- 
tricts, curtailment  of  the  power  of  the  clergy, 
and  reconciliation  with  the  aristocracy. 

Eric  the  Priest-Hater  (1280-1299),  a  lad  in 
his  early  teens,  succeeded  his  father.  The 
queen-dowager,  who  was  the  virtual  ruler  dur- 
ing her  son's  minority,  made  common  cause 
with  the  earls  and  enabled  them  to  regain  priv- 
ileges and  influence  at  the  expense  of  the  king. 
Eric  married  Margaret  of  Scotland,  the  daugh- 
ter of  his  grandfather's  enemy;  but  she  died 
a  year  later  in  giving  birth  to  a  daughter  who 
was  acknowledged  as  the  rightful  heir  of  Scot- 
land after  the  death  of  Alexander  III.  King 
Edward  I  of  England  disputed  the  child's 
claims  and  Eric  was  forced  to  withdraw  the 
candidacy  of  his  daughter.  Eric  married  a 
second  time  to  Isabella  Bruce,  a  sister  of  Kob- 
ert  Bruce,  later  king  of  Scotland.  It  was  dur- 
ing the  reign  of  Eric  that  the  Hanseatic  league 
obtained  a  monopoly  of  the  foreign  trade  of 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings        51 

Norway.  An  account  of  this  transaction  and 
its  effect  on  Norse  history  will  be  given  in  a 
later  chapter  devoted  to  "  Bergen  and  the 
Hanseatic  league." 

Haakon  the  Long-Legs  (1299-1319),  the  sec- 
ond son  of  Magnus  the  Law-Mender,  succeeded 
his  brother.  In  a  bitter  struggle  with  the 
haughty  nobles  Haakon  wrested  from  them 
their  recently  acquired  privileges ;  but  with 
his  death  the  male  line  of  the  race  of  Harald 
the  Fair-Haired  became  extinct. 

By  his  marriage  with  Isabella  Bruce,  King 
Eric  had  a  daughter  who  became  the  wife  of 
Duke  Valdemar,  a  brother  of  the  king  of  Swe- 
den. Magnus  Ericsson  (1319-1374),  the  next 
king  of  Norway,  was  the  child  of  this  union. 
But  as  he  was  only  three  years  old  when 
Haakon  died,  the  government  of  Norway  fell 
into  the  hands  of  a  regency.  Shortly  after- 
wards the  king  of  Sweden  was  deposed  for  his 
cruelties  and  the  lad  Magnus  was  also  declared 
king  of  Sweden.  Thus  the  two  countries  were 
for  the  first  time  united.  The  union  was 
merely  nominal,  for  the  young  king  was  at 
heart  a  Swede  and  he  took  little  interest  in  his 
Norwegian  kingdom.  The  Norse  people  in 
1350  forced  him  to  take  his  second  son  Haakon 


52  In  Viking  Land 

(1350-1381)  as  co-regent  and  to  agree  to  abdi- 
cate the  crown  of  Norway  as  soon  as  the  lad 
reached  his  majority.  Haakon  subsequently 
married  the  daughter  of  the  king  of  Denmark 
and  their  son  Olaf  inherited  the  three  Scandi- 
navian kingdoms. 

The  long  reign  of  Magnus  brought  only  mis- 
fortune to  the  Norsemen;  their  country  was 
neglected;  some  of  the  southern  provinces 
were  lost  to  Denmark;  the  Gula  river  suddenly 
changed  its  course,  owing  to  the  fall  of  an 
enormous  rock  in  its  bed,  killing  two  hundred 
and  fifty  people  and  destroying  forty  farms; 
the  great  eruption  of  Hekla  and  the  earthquake 
in  Iceland  spread  terror  throughout  the  king- 
dom ;  and  the  ' '  Black  Death, ' '  which  had  been 
ravaging  central  and  southern  Europe,  was 
brought  to  Bergen  by  a  merchant  vessel,  and  in 
many  districts  it  swept  away  the  entire  popu- 
lation. The  Valders,  one  of  the  beautiful 
mountain  valleys,  was  almost  depopulated  by 
the  plague.  Industries  stagnated;  commerce 
was  in  the  hands  of  the  Germans,  and  the  pop- 
ulation of  Norway  was  reduced  by  one-third. 

At  the  death  of  Haakon  his  son  Olaf  the 
Young  (1381-1387)  was  proclaimed  king  of 
Norway;  but  as  he  had  already  been  pr.o- 


IN   THE    VALDERS. 


Under  the  Old  Norse  Kings        53 

claimed  king  of  Denmark  the  kingdoms  were 
united,  or  rather  Norway  was  subordinated  to 
the  rank  of  a  province;  and  for  the  next  four 
hundred  and  thirty-four  years  the  political 
history  of  Norway  is  simply  the  history  of 
Denmark.  The  events  of  this  union,  so  far  at 
least  as  they  relate  to  Norway,  will  be  told  in 
the  next  chapter. 


CHAPTER   IV 

UNION    WITH   DENMARK   AND   SWEDEN 

Queen  Margaret  and  the  union  of  Norway,  Sweden,  and  Den- 
mark —  Provisions  of  the  Kalmar  union  —  The  weakness  of 
King  Eric  —  Withdrawal  of  Sweden  from  the  union  —  Loss 
of  the  Scotch  islands  —  Oppressions  of  the  Danish  kings  — 
The  Protestant  reformation  and  the  adoption  of  the 
Lutheran  religion  —  Seven  years'  war  with  Sweden  — 
Misery  in  Norway  under  Frederick  IV  —  German  Puritan- 
ism —  Norway  separated  from  Denmark  and  united  with 
Sweden  —  The  Eidsvold  constitution  —  Conflicts  between 
king  and  parliament  —  Oscar  I  and  Oscar  II  —  Events  which 
culminated  in  the  rupture  with  Sweden. 

THE  union  of  the  three  Scandinavian  king- 
doms, referred  to  in  the  last  chapter,  was  of 
brief  duration,  for  Olaf  died  at  the  early  age 
of  seventeen.  Margaret,  his  mother,  was  pro- 
claimed queen  until  a  new  king  might  be 
elected.  She  secured  the  election  of  her 
nephew,  Eric  of  Pomerania,  to  the  Norwegian 
crown,  but  on  the  condition  that  he  should  not 
be  made  king  during  her  lifetime.  Denmark 
confirmed  the  action  of  Norway,  but  the  Swedes 
selected  Albrecht.  Margaret  accordingly  in- 
vaded Sweden,  defeated  Albrecht  at  Falkop- 

64 


With  Denmark  and  Sweden        55 

ing  (1389),  and  forced  him  to  pay  a  ransom  of 
sixty  thousand  marks.  The  Semirainis  of  the 
North  had  now  reached  the  goal  of  her  desire 
and  she  might  have  worn  the  triple  crown ;  but 
she  unexpectedly  changed  her  mind  and  de- 
clared that  she  wished  to  see  Eric  crowned 
during  her  lifetime.  She  summoned  a  diet 
of  the  three  kingdoms  at  Kalmar  in  1397,  and 
Eric  was  proclaimed  king  of  united  Scandi- 
navia. 

The  Kalmar  union  provided  (1)  that  the 
three  kingdoms  were  to  be  eternally  united 
under  one  king;  (2)  if  the  king  died  without 
issue,  the  representatives  of  the  three  nations 
were  to  come  together  and  peacefully  elect  a 
successor;  (3)  each  kingdom  was  to  be  gov- 
erned by  its  own  laws  and  customs,  but  if  one 
of  the  kingdoms  was  attacked  the  other  two 
should,  in  good  faith,  assist  in  its  defence;  (4) 
the  king  and  his  councillors  should  have  the 
right  to  enter  into  foreign  alliances,  and  what- 
ever they  agreed  upon  should  be  binding  upon 
the  three  countries. 

When  one  recalls  the  enormous  loss  to  the 
three  kingdoms  through  incessant  internecine 
wars,  the  Kalmar  union  would  seem  an  unmis- 
takable blessing  to  all.  The  three  nations  were 


56  In  Viking  Land 

of  the  same  ethnic  stock;  they  had  a  common 
religion;  they  understood  without  effort  each 
other's  language;  social  and  economic  condi- 
tions were  not  dissimilar  in  the  three  king- 
doms. "  Under  a  wise  and  far-sighted  pol- 
icy," remarks  Professor  Boyesen,  "  the  society 
of  the  three  kingdoms  could  have  been  grad- 
ually amalgamated;  its  similarities  and  com- 
mon interests  emphasized;  its  differences 
slowly  obliterated.  If  the  kings  of  the  union 
had  had  the  slightest  conception  of  the  task 
that  was  presented  to  them,  and  had  been  capa- 
ble of  viewing  themselves  apart  from  their 
Danish  nationality,  such  results  might  have 
been  achieved.  But  they  were,  with  a  single 
exception,  utterly  destitute  of  political  ability 
and  foresight.  They  were  determined  to  raise 
the  Danish  to  the  position  of  a  dominant  na- 
tionality, and  to  reduce  Norway  and  Sweden 
to  a  provincial  relation." 

Eric  was  weak,  incompetent,  and  cruel,  and 
he  soon  alienated  his  Swedish  and  Norwegian 
subjects.  Margaret  had  bequeathed  to  him  a 
war  with  the  dukes  of  Sleswick  which  dragged 
along  for  twenty-three  years,  to  meet  the  ex- 
penses of  which  he  levied  heavy  taxes  which 
the  people  of  Sweden  promptly  refused  to  pay. 


With  Denmark  and  Sweden        57 

His  rule  grew  so  burdensome  that  he  was  de- 
posed by  the  parliaments  of  Sweden  and  Den- 
mark —  and  later  by  Norway  —  and  he  es- 
caped from  Copenhagen  with  what  money  was 
in  the  treasury  and  spent  the  balance  of  his 
life  as  a  pirate.  Christopher  of  Bavaria,  "  a 
jolly  and  good-natured  man  who  had  no  apti- 
tude for  state  affairs,"  was  given  the  triple 
crown.  He  made  a  vain  attempt  to  curtail  the 
monopoly  of  the  Hanseatic  league,  and  for  this 
one  effort  he  is  remembered  by  the  Norwegians 
with  gratitude. 

With  the  death  of  Christopher  in  1448  the 
Kalmar  union  was  practically  at  an  end.  The 
Danes  elected  Christian  I  of  Oldenburg  (1448- 
1483)  and  the  Norwegians  did  likewise;  but 
the  Swedes  selected  Karl  Knutsson,  who  soon 
made  himself  obnoxious  to  the  Swedish  clergy 
and  he  was  forced  to  abdicate.  Christian  be- 
came sole  ruler  of  Scandinavia  in  1450.  He 
inherited  the  dukedoms  of  Holstein  and  Sles- 
wick  from  his  uncle,  and  thus  became  the  king 
of  a  vast  empire,  for  the  good  government  of 
which  he  had  neither  the  inclination  nor  the 
ability. 

Norway  suffered  most.  The  country  was  in- 
vaded and  plundered  by  the  Russians  and  the 


58  In  Viking  Land 

Karelians;  the  greedy  Hanseatic  league  grew 
increasingly  oppressive;  the  king  broke  his 
promise  and  sent  Danish  noblemen  to  Norway 
to  whom  he  granted  unlimited  privileges;  the 
Norwegians  were  misgoverned  and  they  suf- 
fered in  a  hundred  ways ;  and,  to  cap  matters, 
the  impoverished  king  pawned  the  Orkney  and 
the  Shetland  islands  and  gave  up  the  annual 
tribute  from  the  Hebrides  to  James  III  as  the 
dower  which  his  daughter  Margaret  was  re- 
quired to  take  to  the  Scotch  king.  The  pawn 
was  never  redeemed  and  these  ancient  depen- 
dencies were  lost  to  Norway. 

The  Swedes  did  not  submit  so  readily  to 
Christian's  shameless  breaches  of  faith,  and 
in  1464  they  recalled  Karl  Knutsson  to  their 
throne.  He  was  again  banished  but  again  re- 
called, and  he  died  as  king  of  Sweden  in  1470. 
The  Swedes,  however,  did  not  completely  free 
themselves  from  the  obnoxious  Kalmar  union 
until  1503. 

Christian  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Hans 
(1483-1513),  who  spent  the  first  half  of  his 
reign  in  trying  to  force  the  Swedes  back  into 
the  union.  Christian  II  (1513-1523)  was  forced 
by  the  nobility  —  Denmark  being  an  elective 
kingdom  —  to  grant  to  them  practically  all  of 


With  Denmark  and  Sweden         59 

his  powers,  and  their  rule  was  more  oppressive 
than  that  of  Christian  I  had  been.  "  Their 
principle  of  government,"  says  a  historian  of 
the  period,  "  was  that  of  a  hawk  in  a  poultry 
yard.  Whatever  the  citizens  undertook  for 
their  advancement  was  checked  by  the  inter- 
ference of  the  privileged  classes;  commerce 
and  industry  were  discouraged,  lest  the  bour- 
geoisie should  gain  power  enough  to  assert  it- 
self. The  peasantry  were  given  absolutely  into 
the  barons'  power,  and  their  degradation  was 
made  complete  by  the  so-called  '  right  of  neck 
and  hand  '  which  Christian  II  granted  as  the 
price  of  his  crown.  By  this  concession  the 
nobles  acquired  the  right  to  sentence  and  pun- 
ish the  peasants  at  their  own  discretion,  with- 
out the  intercession  of  the  courts." 

The  king  had,  however,  incurred  the  dis- 
pleasure of  the  powerful  Hanseatic  league  and 
they  forced  him  to  abdicate  and  placed  Fred- 
erick I  of  Holstein  (1524-1533)  on  the  throne. 
During  his  reign  the  reformatory  religious 
doctrines  of  Martin  Luther  were  adopted  in 
Denmark.  An  interregnum  of  four  years 
(1533-1537)  followed  the  death  of  Frederick 
because  of  differences  of  opinion  on  the  relig- 
ious question.  Frederick's  eldest  son  was  a 


60  In  Viking  Land 

Protestant,  but  Hans,  the  younger,  clung  to  the 
Roman  Catholic  faith.  Civil  war  ensued;  cit- 
ies were  destroyed;  noblemen  were  murdered; 
but  the  Protestant  faith  triumphed,  and  Chris- 
tian III  (1537-1539)  was  elected  king. 

Protestantism  had  not  made  great  headway 
in  Norway,  and  the  zeal  with  which  the  Danish 
king  imposed  the  doctrines  of  Luther  upon  his 
Norwegian  subjects  was  not  altogether  to  his 
credit.  Church  property  was  confiscated  by 
the  crown  or  granted  to  his  royal  favourites; 
Roman  Catholic  bishops  and  priests  were  ex- 
iled, and  "  ex-soldiers,  ex-sailors,  bankrupt 
traders,  and  all  sorts  of  vagabonds  were 
thought  to  be  good  enough  to  preach  the  word 
of  God  in  Norway."  Many  of  these  unworthy 
spiritual  teachers  were  promptly  killed  or 
driven  from  the  country,  so  that  at  last ' '  phys- 
ical strength  became  a  prime  requisite  for  hold- 
ing a  pastorate  in  the  Norse  mountain  valleys, 
and  the  surest  road  to  popularity  for  a  parson 
was  to  thrash  the  refractory  members  of  his 
congregation.  That  inspired  respect  and  in- 
clined the  rest  more  favourably  toward  his 
preaching."  With  the  arrival  of  Bishop  Gje- 
ble  Pedersson  at  Bergen  —  the  first  Lutheran 
bishop  to  locate  in  the  country  —  the  character 


With  Denmark  and  Sweden         61 

and  learning  of  the  clergy  improved  and  the 
new  faith  made  rapid  progress. 

Frederick  II  (1559-1588)  was  forced  to  fight 
a  calamitous  seven  years'  war  with  Sweden 
which  sowed  seeds  of  national  hatred  that  con- 
tinued to  grow  and  bear  fruit.  Trondhjem 
was  captured  by  the  Swedes;  the  cathedral  at 
Hamar  was  burned,  and  the  fertile  districts  of 
the  Aker  were  ravaged.  His  successor,  Chris- 
tian IV  (1588-1648),  for  the  first  time  since 
the  formation  of  the  union,  gave  evidence  of 
royal  interest  in  the  welfare  of  the  Norsemen. 
He  travelled  extensively  in  Norway,  going  as 
far  north  as  the  arctic  circle;  he  imprisoned 
Danish  officials  who  exceeded  their  rights;  he 
codified  and  improved  the  laws  of  the  land; 
he  developed  the  silver  mines  at  Kongsberg 
and  the  copper  mines  at  Eoros,  and  he  founded 
the  cities  of  Christiania  and  Christiansand. 
But  the  country  suffered  greatly  by  his  par- 
ticipation in  the  Thirty  Years'  War,  the  inva- 
sion of  the  Norway  by  a  band  of  Scotch  mer- 
cenaries in  the  employment  of  the  Swedish 
king,  and  a  second  war  with  Sweden  which  re- 
sulted in  the  loss  of  two  Norwegian  provinces 
—  Jemtland  and  Herjedalen. 

During  the  reign  of  Frederick  III    (1648- 


62  In  Viking  Land 

1670)  new  disasters  befell  Norway.  The  ill- 
advised  war  with  Sweden,  on  the  supposition 
that  the  Swedish  king  had  suffered  a  crushing 
defeat  at  the  hands  of  the  Poles,  resulted  in 
the  loss  of  two  more  Norwegian  provinces  — 
Viken  and  Trondhjem.  A  subsequent  revolt  of 
the  Tronders  redeemed  the  latter  province. 
The  kingdom  of  Denmark  up  to  this  time  had 
been  elective,  hence  the  dependence  of  succes- 
sive Danish  rulers  upon  the  caprice  and  selfish- 
ness of  the  nobles.  Frederick,  however,  suc- 
ceeded in  altering  the  constitution  and  in  mak- 
ing Denmark  hereditary,  a  change  which  im- 
proved not  only  the  administrative  service  of 
that  country,  but  of  Norway  also. 

The  reign  of  Christian  V  (1670-1699)  was 
not  consequential.  He  imitated  the  costly  and 
tawdry  splendour  of  Louis  XIV;  sold  indif- 
ferently his  Danish  and  Norwegian  subjects 
to  foreign  nations  as  mercenaries  that  he  might 
get  the  money  to  ape  the  glittering  vices  of 
the  French  court,  and  he  surrounded  himself 
with  German  counts  and  made  German  the 
language  of  his  court. 

Norway  sank  to  the  lowest  depths  of  misery 
during  the  reign  of  Frederick  IV  (1699-1730). 
He  sold  the  trade  of  Finmark,  the  northern- 


A   MOUNTAIN    LAKE. 


With  Denmark  and  Sweden         63 

most  province  of  Norway,  to  three  Danes  who 
practised  unlimited  extortion  on  the  helpless 
Lapps,  and  the  churches  of  Norway  he  sold  to 
private  individuals,  contending  that  if  the 
parishioners  owned  them  they  must  produce 
the  deeds. 

German  Puritanism  greatly  influenced  the 
country  in  the  reign  of  Christian  VI  (1730- 
1746).  He  introduced  a  rigid  ceremonial  at 
his  court ;  enjoined  the  utmost  rigour  in  church 
observances  and  abstention  from  worldly 
amusements ;  organized  an  efficient  militia,  and 
made  education  compulsory.  But  the  decrees 
forbidding  the  southern  provinces  of  Norway 
from  purchasing  supplies  of  grain  in  any  coun- 
try but  Denmark  were  both  oppressive  and 
disastrous  to  his  Norwegian  subjects. 

Some  of  the  obnoxious  Puritanical  decrees 
were  abolished  by  Frederick  V  (1746-1766), 
but  he  came  within  an  ace  of  plunging  his 
country  into  a  hopeless  war  with  Russia. 
Frederick  promoted  the  commerce  of  Norway; 
imported  skilled  miners  from  Germany,  and 
organized  the  national  military  academy  at 
Christiania  and  the  academy  of  science  at 
Trondhjem. 

The  country  was  ruled  by  the  king's  minis- 


64  In  Viking  Land 

ters  during  the  reign  of  Christian  VII  (1766- 
1808) ;  for  as  a  prince  he  had  bankrupted  his 
vital  forces  by  a  life  of  wild  dissipation  and 
he  became  an  imbecile  shortly  after  reaching 
the  throne.  His  ministers  were,  as  a  rule,  wise 
autocrats.  They  improved  and  simplified  the 
judicial  procedure;  abolished  torture;  granted 
freedom  to  the  press;  curtailed  the  privileges 
of  the  nobles,  and  husbanded  the  finances  of  the 
kingdom. 

The  university  at  Christiania,  which  was 
founded  during  the  reign  of  Frederick  VI 
(1808-1836),  is  the  most  significant  event  of 
the  period.  Norway  suffered  greatly  by  the 
friction  between  Denmark  and  England.  Dur- 
ing the  American  war  of  revolution  the  min- 
isters of  Christian  VII  concluded  an  armed 
neutrality  with  Sweden  and  Russia  which  bene- 
fited very  directly  the  trade  and  navigation 
of  Denmark  and  Norway.  In  the  determina- 
tion of  England,  however,  to  break  the  power 
of  Napoleon,  she  claimed  the  right  of  search- 
ing the  ships  of  non-combatants  for  munitions 
of  war.  Many  Danish  and  Norwegian  vessels 
were  captured  by  the  British  and  trade  was 
ruined  by  a  blockade  of  the  seaports.  The 
government  was  too  weak  to  defy  England, 


With  Denmark  and  Sweden         65 

and  Denmark  was  forced  to  retire  from  the 
armed  neutrality.  Frederick's  subsequent  cul- 
tivation of  the  friendship  of  Napoleon  was  a 
great  state  blunder,  for  it  isolated  Denmark 
from  the  great  European  alliance  which 
brought  about  the  final  defeat  of  the  French 
usurper. 

Norway  was  governed  by  a  so-called  govern- 
ment commission,  with  the  Prince  of  Augusten- 
burg  at  its  head,  during  the  period  of  difficulty 
between  Denmark  and  England;  and  the  Nor- 
wegians would  have  been  much  pleased  if 
this  arrangement  might  have  continued.  But  a 
clause  in  a  treaty  between  Russia  and  Sweden, 
made  in  1812,  ordained  an  altogether  different 
fate  for  the  hardy  Norsemen.  Sweden  had 
been  forced  to  yield  Finland  to  Eussia,  and 
to  make  good  this  loss  Russia  suggested  that 
she  grab  Norway.  The  treaty  of  Kiel  in  1814 
gave  the  sanction  of  the  Great  Powers  of  Eu- 
rope to  this  crime;  and  the  union  of  Denmark 
and  Norway,  which  had  existed  for  more  than 
four  hundred  years,  was  dissolved. 

The  Norwegians  protested,  but  there  was  no 
appeal  from  the  decisions  of  the  Great  Powers, 
no  matter  how  unjust,  and  they  were  finally 
forced  into  union  with  Sweden.  After  a  bit  of 


66  In  Viking  Land 

sparring,  Bernadotte,  later  Charles  XIV  John, 
on  behalf  of  King  Charles  XIII  of  Sweden, 
consented  to  recognize  the  independence  of 
Norway  and  to  govern  the  country  in  accord- 
ance with  a  constitution  that  had  been  adopted 
at  Eidsvold  the  17th  of  May,  1814. 

The  Eidsvold  constitution  provided  (1)  that 
Norway  should  be  a  limited,  hereditary  mon- 
archy, independent  and  indivisible,  whose  ruler 
shall  be  called  a  king;  (2)  the  people  shall  ex- 
ercise the  legislative  power  through  their  rep- 
resentatives ;  (3)  taxes  can  be  levied  only  by 
the  representatives  of  the  people ;  (4)  the  king 
shall  have  the  right  to  declare  war  and  make 
peace;  (5)  he  shall  also  have  the  right  of  par- 
don; (6)  the  judicial  power  shall  be  separated 
from  the  executive  and  legislative  power;  (7) 
there  shall  be  complete  liberty  of  press;  (8) 
the  Evangelical  Lutheran  religion  shall  be  the 
religion  of  the  state  and  king;  (9)  no  personal 
nor  hereditary  privileges  shall  in  the  future 
be  granted  to  any  one;  and  (10)  every  male 
citizen,  irrespective  of  birth,  station,  or  prop- 
erty, shall  be  required,  for  a  certain  length  of 
time,  to  carry  arms  in  defence  of  his  country. 

When  Charles  XIV  John  became  king  of 
Norway  and  Sweden  he  was  irritated  by  the 


With  Denmark  and  Sweden        67 

opposition  of  the  Norwegian  parliament  to  the 
payment  of  a  part  of  the  public  debt  of  Den- 
mark which  the  king  of  Sweden  had  guaran- 
teed at  the  council  of  Kiel.  A  compromise  was 
finally  reached,  by  the  terms  of  which  the  king 
and  crown  prince  renounced  their  civil  lists 
from  Norway  for  a  period  of  ten  years,  and 
the  Norwegians  agreed  to  pay  Denmark  about 
three  million  dollars.  The  Norwegian  parlia- 
ment at  Christiania  abolished  all  noble  titles 
and  privileges,  but  the  king  refused  to  make 
the  measure  a  law.  The  bill  was  passed  by  two 
successive  parliaments  and  a  rupture  was 
averted  by  a  compromise.  The  king  agreed 
to  sanction  a  law  abolishing  such  privileges  of 
the  nobles  as  were  in  direct  conflict  with  the 
Norwegian  constitution  and  stipulating  that 
the  exemption  from  taxation  and  other  per- 
sonal privileges  should  cease  with  the  demise 
of  the  living  nobles.  In  spite  of  the  fact  that 
King  Charles  XIV  John  was  trained  in  the 
political  school  of  the  French  Kevolution,  he 
had  no  faith  in  democracy,  and  he  was  contin- 
ually at  loss  to  understand  the  aspirations  for 
freedom  which  his  stubborn  Norse  subjects  so 
constantly  displayed. 

His  son,  King  Oscar  I  (1844-1849),  had  more 


68  In  Viking  Land 

patience  and  prudence;  and  friction  with  the 
Norwegian  parliament  was  largely  averted. 
He  gave  Norway  her  own  flag  and  manifested 
a  keen  interest  in  the  welfare  of  the  country. 
Charles  XV  (1859-1872)  was  also  a  man  of 
peace  and  Norway  prospered  during  his  reign. 
The  commerce  of  the  country  developed  rap- 
idly ;  the  overland  telegraph  line  was  extended 
from  Lindesnaes  to  the  North  Cape ;  laws  were 
passed  granting  larger  religious  liberties,  and 
it  was  provided  that  the  national  parliament 
should  meet  annually  instead  of  triennially. 

Having  died  in  the  prime  of  life  without 
male  issue,  the  king  was  succeeded  by  his 
brother  Oscar  II  (1872-1907),  who  acted  as 
sovereign  of  the  dual  kingdom  down  to  the 
time  of  dissolution  (1905).  In  spite  of  splen- 
did personal  qualities,  generous  endowment  of 
forbearance,  and  keen  sagacity  in  matters  of 
statecraft,  the  reign  of  Oscar  was  one  of  inces- 
sant strife  with  the  contentious  Norwegian 
parliament.  The  liberal  and  democratic  move- 
ment which  had  gained  enormous  strength 
since  the  union  with  Sweden,  together  with  a 
strong  national  spirit  among  all  classes  of  the 
Norse  people,  foredoomed  separation;  and  it 
is  well  that  the  crisis  came  while  the  gentle 


With  Denmark  and  Sweden         69 

and  peace-loving  Oscar  II  was  still  on  the 
throne;  for  a  sovereign  with  less  charity  and 
forbearance  might  have  plunged  the  two  coun- 
tries into  a  period  of  needless  bloodshed. 

In  this  connection  it  is  only  necessary  to 
enumerate  the  leading  events  which  culminated 
in  the  final  rupture.  Oscar  II  was  scarcely 
well  seated  on  his  throne  when  his  government 
and  the  Norwegian  parliament  clashed  on  a 
dozen  questions  —  the  time  for  the  sitting  of 
parliament,  the  right  of  dissolution,  allowance 
for  its  members,  pensions  for  retired  clergy- 
men, the  king's  veto  rights,  the  management  of 
government  railways  in  Norway,  organization 
of  volunteer  sharp-shooting  corps,  etc.  The 
most  serious  conflict  came  in  1891  when  it  was 
proposed  that  Norway  should  have  a  consular 
service  independent  from  that  of  Sweden; 
then  followed  the  abolition  of  the  symbols  of 
union  from  the  Norwegian  national  flag,  the 
removal  of  the  king's  portrait  from  the  money, 
and  the  final  separation  in  1905. 


CHAPTER   V 

HAAKON   VII   AND   THE   NEW    KINGDOM 

Rejection  of  the  consular  service  bill  leads  to  the  separation 
from  Sweden  —  Result  of  the  general  plebiscite  in  Norway 

—  Terms  of  separation  —  Haakon  VII  elected  sovereign  of 
the   new    kingdom  —  Social   and    personal   qualities    of   the 
young    king  —  Norway    a    constitutional    monarchy  —  The 
national  parliament  —  Executive  department  of  the  govern- 
ment —  Simplicity  of  Norwegian  laws  —  Crime  and  criminals 

—  Organization  of  the  Norwegian  courts  —  Army  and  navy 

—  Government  revenues  and  expenditures  —  Nature  of  the 
direct  and  indirect  taxes  —  Free-trade  and  protectionist  poli- 
cies —  The    national    debt  —  Financial    obligations    of    the 
municipalities  —  The    monetary    system    of    Norway  —  Na- 
tional and  savings  banks  and  their  supervision. 

THE  measure  relating  to  the  consular  service 
was  the  rock  upon  which  the  dual  ship  of  state 
finally  sundered.  On  the  27th  of  May,  1905, 
King  Oscar  unreservedly  rejected  the  inde- 
pendent consular  service  bill.  The  Norwegian 
ministers  forthwith  resigned.  The  king  de- 
clared that  it  was  impossible  to  form  a  new 
ministry,  whereupon  the  Norwegian  parlia- 
ment on  the  7th  of  June,  1905,  declared  the 
union  with  Sweden  dissolved.  This  action, 

70 


Haakon  VII  71 


says  Dr.  Fridtjof  Nansen,  the  explorer  and 
statesman,  "  was  received  with  great  satisfac- 
tion and  enthusiasm  over  the  whole  of  Nor- 
way. In  Sweden  it  did  not  at  first  cause  as 
much  sensation  as  might  have  been  expected. 
The  feeling  seems  rather  to  have  been  that  of 
astonishment,  as  if  they  had  not  expected  that 
the  Norwegians  really  would  take  such  decisive 
action.  The  public  did  not  seem  quite  to  un- 
derstand what  had  happened,  and  could  not 
grasp  the  fact  that  Norway  had  dethroned  the 
king  and  thus  dissolved  the  union." 

There  were  Hotspurs  in  Sweden  who  cried 
for  war  and  demanded  that  the  union  should 
be  held  together  by  force  of  arms,  but  wiser 
counsels  prevailed  in  cabinet  circles;  and  on 
the  19th  of  June  the  Swedish  council  of  state 
advised  the  dissolution  of  the  union.  !When 
the  matter  came  before  the  Swedish  parlia- 
ment eight  days  later,  a  special  committee  was 
appointed  to  draft  resolutions  looking  to  the 
final  separation  of  the  two  countries.  The 
committee  made  its  report  the  25th  of  July. 
It  recommended  the  dissolution  of  the  bond 
after  the  settlement  of  certain  questions  touch- 
ing the  frontier  line,  the  pasture  rights  of  the 
nomadic  Lapps,  and  the  use  of  water  ways, 


72  In  Viking  Land 

providing  that  the  people  of  Norway  in  gen- 
eral election  favored  the  dissolution. 

The  Norwegian  parliament  at  once  proposed 
that  a  general  plebiscite  should  be  taken  the 
13th  of  August;  by  which  the  electors  should 
declare  whether  or  not  they  favoured  dissolu- 
tions. Eight-five  per  cent,  of  the  electors 
voted ;  368,211  were  in  favour  of  separation  and 
184  against  it.  The  election  returns  produced 
something  of  a  surprise  in  Sweden,  for  Swed- 
ish newspapers  had  quite  generally  repre- 
sented that  the  majority  of  the  Norwegians 
disapproved  of  separation  and  that  the  crisis 
was  the  work  of  a  handful  of  scheming  Norse 
politicians. 

After  the  pronouncement  of  the  Norwegian 
electors,  the  government  of  Sweden  invited 
Norway  to  send  four  delegates  to  meet  a  like 
number  of  Swedish  delegates  at  Karlstad  on 
the  31st  of  August.  The  negotiations  were  of 
a  very  difficult  nature,  because  of  the  unreason- 
able demands  of  Sweden;  and  it  seemed  for  a 
time  that  the  conference  would  have  to  break 
up  and  that  the  two  countries  would  be  plunged 
into  war.  Fortunately  disputed  matters  were 
satisfactorily  adjusted  and  the  conference  ter- 
minated its  labours  the  23rd  of  September. 


Haakon  VII  73 


The  action  of  the  delegates  was  ratified  in  both 
countries  in  October;  and  on  the  4th  of  No- 
vember Karl  XIII,  second  son  of  King  Oscar, 
was  offered  the  Norwegian  crown.  It  was 
promptly  declined;  and  after  a  plebiscite, 
Prince  Karl  of  Denmark  was  on  the  18th  of 
November  elected  King  of  Norway.  Two  days 
later  the  crown  was  accepted,  and  on  the  25th 
of  November  he  arrived  at  Christiania.  He 
was  coronated  at  Trondhjem  the  1st  of  Janu- 
ary, 1906,  as  Haakon  VII. 

Haakon  VII,  the  chief  magistrate  of  the  new 
kingdom  of  Norway,  is  the  second  son  of  Fred- 
erick VIII,  king  of  Denmark.  He  was  born 
the  3rd  of  August,  1872.  His  brothers  are 
Prince  Christian,  heir-apparent  to  the  Danish 
throne,  and  the  Princes  Harald  and  Gustav; 
his  sisters,  the  Princesses  Thyra  and  Dagmar; 
his  uncles,  King  Edward  VII  of  England,  King 
George  I  of  Greece,  the  Duke  of  Cumberland, 
and  Prince  Waldemar  of  Denmark;  his  aunts, 
the  queens  of  England  and  Greece,  the  em- 
press-dowager of  Russia,  and  the  Princess 
Marie  of  Orleans;  and  his  cousins,  Czar  Nich- 
olas II  of  Russia,  the  Prince  of  Wales,  the 
crown  prince  of  Greece,  and  Prince  Aage  of 
Denmark.  He  married  Princess  Maud,  the 


74  In  Viking  Land 

third  daughter  of  King  Edward  VII  of  Eng- 
land, the  22nd  of  July,  1896;  and  one  son, 
Prince  Olaf,  the  crown  prince  of  Norway,  born 
the  2d  of  July,  1903,  is  the  result  of  this  union. 

The  new  Norwegian  king  enjoys  the  reputa- 
tion of  being  liberal-minded,  easy-going,  and 
fond  of  outdoor  sports.  At  the  age  of  thirteen 
he  entered  the  royal  navy  of  Denmark  as  a 
midshipman,  where,  for  nine  months,  he  had 
the  lowest  post  in  the  service ;  but  he  weathered 
the  ordeal  excellently  and  emerged  from  the 
navy  with  the  sobriquet  "  the  sailor  prince." 
Haakon  is  often  seen  in  the  saddle  with  his 
hounds ;  he  is  a  patron  of  vigorous  and  manly 
athletics,  and  he  is  a  leader  in  the  winter  sports 
which  are  fast  becoming  a  leading  feature  of 
the  social  season  at  Christiania.  The  new 
queen  is  stately  in  appearance  but  cold  and 
reserved  in  demeanour;  but  little  Prince  Olaf 
is  the  most  popular  individual  in  the  new  king- 
dom. 

Norway  is  a  constitutional  and  hereditary 
monarchy  of  a  very  democratic  sort.  The  con- 
stitution of  the  17th  of  May,  1814,  which  forms 
the  basis  of  the  fundamental  law  of  the  land, 
vests  the  legislative  power  in  the  representa- 
tives of  the  people,  although  the  king  is  given 


I 


THE  ROYAL  FAMILY  OF  NORWAY. 


Haakon  VII  75 


limited  veto  rights.  He  may  exercise  the  veto 
twice;  but  if  the  same  measure  should  pass 
three  parliaments,  formed  by  separate  and 
subsequent  elections,  it  becomes  a  law  without 
the  sovereign's  assent. 

The  national  parliament  (storthing)  meets 
annually,  but  new  elections  take  place  only 
every  three  years.  The  sessions  cannot  ex- 
ceed two  months  without  the  sanction  of  the 
king.  The  right  of  voting  belongs  to  every 
Norwegian  citizen  —  the  franchise  was  ex- 
tended to  women  in  1907  —  of  the  age  of 
twenty-five  years  and  domiciled  in  the  country 
during  the  last  five  years.  The  country  is  di- 
vided into  rural  districts  and  towns,  each  elect- 
ing one  member  of  parliament.  There  are 
forty-one  representatives  from  the  towns  and 
eighty-two  from  the  rural  districts.  Members 
of  parliament  must  be  at  least  thirty  years  old, 
residents  of  Norway  for  at  least  ten  years,  and 
voters  in  the  districts  which  they  represent. 
They  receive  an  allowance  of  about  $3.25  a 
day  while  parliament  is  in  session,  besides 
travelling  expenses. 

There  is  in  reality  but  one  house  of  parlia- 
ment; but  when  the  members  assemble  the 
second  week  of  October  each  year,  they  elect 


76  In  Viking  Land 

one-fourth  of  their  number  to  form  a  select 
council  —  Lagthing  —  while  the  remaining 
three-fourths  form  a  general  council  —  Odels- 
thing.  All  new  laws  must  first  come  before  the 
Odelsthing,  after  which  they  pass  to  the  Lag- 
thing  to  be  accepted  or  rejected.  In  cases  of 
disagreement  the  two  houses  meet  in  joint  ses- 
sion and  decide  the  matter  without  discussion. 
Besides  making  the  laws,  parliament  natural- 
izes foreigners;  imposes  taxes;  provides  for 
the  administration  of  the  property  of  the  state ; 
superintends  the  coinage  and  the  emission  of 
notes;  opens  loans  on  the  credit  of  the  king- 
dom; votes  the  amounts  required  for  public 
expenditures,  and  examines  treaties  concluded 
with  foreign  powers. 

The  executive  department  of  the  government 
is  represented  by  the  king,  a  minister  of  state 
(president  of  the  council),  and  eight  councillors 
of  state,  who  are  cabinet  officers.  The  minis- 
ter and  councillors  may  participate  in  the  dis- 
cussions of  parliament  but  they  have  no  vote. 
The  eight  cabinet  officers  are  (1)  foreign  af- 
fairs, (2)  education  and  religion,  (3)  justice, 
(4)  commerce,  navigation  and  industry,  (5) 
agriculture,  (6)  public  works,  (7)  finance  and 
customs,  and  (8)  defence. 


Haakon  VII  77 


For  administrative  purposes  Norway  is  di- 
vided into  twenty  counties  —  the  cities  of 
Christiania  and  Bergen  being  regarded  as 
counties.  These  are  again  subdivided  into 
towns  and  rural  communes.  The  towns  and 
rural  districts  are  governed  by  councils  com- 
posed of  from  twelve  to  forty-eight  members. 
Presidents  of  the  local  councils  also  form 
county  councils  which  meet  yearly  to  decide 
upon  matters  concerning  the  general  welfare 
of  the  county.  The  county  councils  make 
grants  for  the  construction  of  highways  and 
railways  and  they  deal  with  matters  relating 
to  county  boards  of  education,  lunacy,  and 
prisons. 

The  laws  of  Norway  are  simple  and  brief. 
They  are  bound  in  a  small  pocket-volume,  each 
law  occupying  a  paragraph,  and  they  are  to 
be  found  in  every  Norse  home.  The  court  of 
assize  hears  the  more  important  civil  and  all 
criminal  cases.  It  is  composed  of  a  judge  and 
ten  jurymen,  the  latter  being  selected  for  each 
session  from  among  the  rate-payers  where  the 
court  is  held.  Punishments  entailing  the  loss 
of  liberty  are  decreed  by  the  penal  code  for 
terms  ranging  from  six  months  to  life.  Capital 
punishment  is  permitted  by  the  code,  but  it  has 


78  In  Viking  Land 

not  been  used  since  1876.  There  are  peniten- 
tiaries for  men  and  women  at  Christiania  and 
one  for  men  at  Trondhjem. 

The  crime  problem  is  less  serious  in  Nor- 
way than  in  many  European  countries,  and 
there  has  been  marked  diminution  during  the 
past  thirty  years  with  the  decrease  in  the  use 
of  alcoholic  beverages.  The  decrease  has  been 
most  marked  in  the  matter  of  theft  and  of- 
fences against  public  morals.  Among  the  more 
serious  offences  committed  in  Norway,  infan- 
ticide leads.  Incest  and  rape  occupy  a  rather 
prominent  place.  For  the  milder  offences  the 
punishment  most  often  inflicted  is  imprison- 
ment on  bread  and  water,  the  sentence  being 
from  four  to  thirty  days.  Nearly  half  the  num- 
ber of  persons  condemned  are  sentenced  to  this 
punishment.  About  twenty  per  cent,  of  the 
offences  are  expiated  by  fines.  The  women  of 
Norway  play  a  relatively  larger  part  in  the 
criminal  matters  than  in  the  United  States. 

The  court  of  mutual  agreement  is  the  lowest 
branch  of  the  judicial  organization  of  Norway. 
Voters  of  municipalities  —  towns  and  rural 
districts  —  meet  triennially  and  select  ten  of 
their  number  to  act  as  members  of  a  concilia- 
tion commission.  If  members  of  the  legal  pro- 


Haakon  VII  79 


fession  they  are  not  allowed  to  practise  law 
during  their  term  of  office,  thus  removing  a 
strong  temptation  to  litigation.  The  commis- 
sion endeavours  to  reconcile  the  parties  who 
have  differences;  and  if  the  litigants  agree  to 
the  finding  of  the  commission,  the  judgment  is 
registered  and  rendered  valid,  at  an  expense 
to  the  suitors  of  about  thirty  cents.  If,  how- 
ever, the  suitors  disagree  with  the  judgment  of 
the  conciliation  commission,  an  appeal  may  be 
made  to  the  higher  court,  which  is  composed 
of  one  judge,  who  must  possess  legal  training, 
and  four  associates  chosen  from  among  the 
tax-payers  of  the  district.  The  competence 
of  this  court  is  complete  in  civil  matters;  and 
no  appeal  may  be  taken  if  the  amount  in  dis- 
pute is  less  than  $8.65.  When  appeals  are 
made,  they  are  taken  to  the  special  courts  at 
Christiania  and  Bergen.  The  final  resort  is 
the  supreme  court  at  Christiania.  The  Nor- 
wegians, however,  are  not  a  litigious  people. 

The  army  of  Norway  is  a  national  militia, 
something  after  the  pattern  of  that  of  Swit- 
zerland. While  liability  to  service  is  compul- 
sory between  the  ages  of  eighteen  and  fifty, 
very  little  time  is  devoted  to  military  training. 
The  men  are  usually  called  out  at  the  age  of 


80 In  Viking  Land 

twenty-two  and  they  remain  on  the  army  list 
for  sixteen  years.  They  serve  first  in  the  line 
for  six  years,  then  in  the  landvern  for  six 
years,  and  for  four  years  in  the  landstorm. 
The  line  only  can  be  employed  outside  the 
country.  The  military  training  of  conscripts 
is  not  carried  on  in  barracks,  as  in  most  Euro- 
pean countries,  but  by  exercise  in  camps  during 
a  few  weeks  of  the  summer.  During  the  first 
year  the  drill  for  the  infantry  lasts  for  forty- 
eight  days  and  for  special  arms  from  sixty  to 
ninety  days.  After  the  drill  come  the  battal- 
ion exercises.  These  exercises  are  continued 
twenty-four  days  each  summer  for  seven  years 
for  the  men  in  line. 

The  non-commissioned  officers  have  regular 
appointments  or  serve  as  conscripts.  Their 
theoretical  and  practical  course  of  training 
covers  three  years  for  the  infantry  and  cav- 
alry and  four  years  for  artillery  and  engineers. 
Most  of  them  are  non-commissioned  officers 
and  serve  only  during  the  summer  exercises. 
Officers  who  receive  regular  appointments 
must  complete  the  elementary  course  of  the 
national  military  school.  The  nominal 
strength  of  the  Norwegian  army  is  about 
80,000  men,  but  not  more  than  18,000  can  be 


Haakon  VII  81 


under  arms  at  any  one  time  without  the  con- 
sent of  parliament. 

The  navy  of  Norway  is  not  consequential. 
From  seven  to  eight  hundred  conscripts  are 
required  yearly  to  go  through  a  course  of 
training  that  lasts  about  six  months.  The  navy 
has  four  battle-ships,  four  old  coast  service 
monitors,  three  gunboats,  and  twenty-one  mod- 
ern and  ten  old  torpedo  boats.  Norway  has, 
however,  a  comparatively  large  merchant  ma- 
rine, including  5,770  sailing  and  1,499  steam 
vessels.  The  most  important  fortresses  are 
at  Oscarsborg,  Agdenes,  Bergen,  Tonsberg, 
and  Christiansand. 

There  is  probably  no  country  in  the  world 
where  governmental  affairs  are  conducted  with 
greater  economy  than  in  Norway.  The  largest 
single  source  of  revenue  for  the  maintenance 
of  the  government  is  furnished  by  customs 
duties,  $10,530,000;  excise  duties  on  alcoholic 
beverages  furnish  $2,106,000;  the  income  tax, 
$1,377,000;  state  property,  $984,980;  stamps, 
$361,000;  judicial  fees,  $324,000,  and  miscel- 
laneous revenues,  $3,030,000.  The  important 
items  of  expenditure  are:  army,  $3,432,910; 
interest  on  the  public  debt,  $3,073,680;  educa- 
tion and  religion,  $2,900,000;  administration 


82  In  Viking  Land 

of  justice,  $2,041,720;  finance  and  customs  de- 
partments, $1,273,000;  navy,  $1,246,000;  roads, 
canals,  and  ports,  $1,155,000;  civil  list  of  the 
king,  $229,770 ;  and  national  parliament,  $191,- 
430.  During  the  year  1906-1907,  the  state  rail- 
ways of  Norway  cost  the  country  $1,430,460 
more  than  they  earned;  but  this  large  item  is 
due  to  the  enormous  extension  of  state  railway 
lines,  and  particularly  to  the  construction  of 
the  costly  mountain  road  that  is  to  connect 
Christiania  with  Bergen.  The  combined  postal 
and  telegraph  services  —  both  remarkably  ef- 
ficient for  so  sparsely  settled  a  country  —  had 
a  deficit  of  only  $82,000. 
There  are  three  direct  taxes  in  Norway  — 

(1)  the  tax  on  foreign  commercial  travellers, 

(2)  the  legacy  tax,  and   (3)   the  income  tax. 
The  government  receives  something  like  half 
a  million  dollars  annually  from  foreign  com- 
mercial travellers.    All  inheritances  falling  to 
others  than  the  wife,  children,  and  parents  of 
the  deceased  are  taxed  from  six  to  eight  per 
cent.    The  income  tax  of  Norway  is  progress- 
ive.   Incomes  of  less  than  three  hundred  dol- 
lars are  not  taxed.     From  three  hundred  to 
one  thousand  dollars  the  tax  is  two  per  cent.; 
from  one  to  two  thousand  dollars,  three  per 


Haakon  VII  83 


cent.;  from  two  to  three  thousand  dollars, 
four  per  cent. ;  and  above  three  thousand  dol- 
lars, five  per  cent. 

The  indirect  taxes  are  in  the  nature  of  cus- 
toms duties,  liquor  and  malt  taxes,  and  taxes 
on  public  documents  and  playing  cards.  Nor- 
way has  wavered  between  free-trade  and  pro- 
tection for  more  than  half  a  century.  After 
the  union  with  Sweden  the  country  was  mod- 
erately protectionist  in  practice;  in  the  six- 
ties and  seventies  free-trade  policies  prevailed, 
and  during  the  past  ten  years  the  protectionist 
movement  has  again  gained  force.  The  tariff 
rates,  however,  are  not  high.  The  duty  on 
half-completed  manufactures  is  from  five  to  ten 
per  cent,  of  the  value  and  on  completed  manu- 
factures from  fifteen  to  thirty  per  cent.  There 
is  no  duty  on  raw  material  imported  for  indus- 
trial purposes,  and  the  same  rule  applies  to 
some  half -completed  manufactures.  Cereals  — 
to  except  malt  —  are  on  the  free  list.  The  du- 
ties on  tobacco,  cigars,  malt,  liquors,  and  cof- 
fee are  relatively  high.  There  is  a  loading  and 
lighthouse  tax  on  vessels  importing  goods  to 
the  country  and  a  small  tax  on  vessels  export- 
ing goods  from  the  country. 

Liquors  may  be  manufactured  only  at  dis- 


84  In  Viking  Land 

tilleries  that  are  under  government  supervi- 
sion, but  the  production  of  malt  for  household 
purposes  is  free  from  any  taxation.  When 
liquor  is  exported  out  of  the  country  or  is  made 
unserviceable  for  drinking  purposes,  the  tax  is 
refunded.  Among  other  assets  of  the  national 
treasury  may  be  noted  the  stock  capital  of  the 
Norwegian  Mortgage  Bank,  shares  in  the  Bank 
of  Norway  and  the  state  railways,  and  the 
working  capital  of  the  silver  mines  at  Kongs- 
berg. 

The  national  debt  of  Norway  is  something 
like  sixty  million  dollars,  and  the  interest  on 
and  reduction  of  this  debt  is  an  important  item 
of  expenditure.  As  before  pointed  out,  a  debt 
was  inherited  from  Denmark.  In  addition 
loans  have  been  found  necessary  for  the  con- 
struction of  the  state  railways,  the  formation 
of  a  working  capital  for  the  Norwegian  Mort- 
gage Bank,  and  the  establishment  of  the  tele- 
graph and  telephone  service.  The  terminable 
national  debt  has  been  incurred  chiefly  by 
means  of  foreign  loans  negotiated  with  indi- 
vidual banking-houses  or  syndicates  of  banks. 
As  a  rule  the  loans  have  been  raised  in  Eng- 
land, Germany,  and  France.  The  rate  of  in- 
terest on  loans  has  been  from  three  to  four 


Haakon  VII  85 


and  one-half  per  cent.,  and  the  time  of  reim- 
bursement from  ten  to  seventy-five  years. 

Municipalities  bear  a  large  part  of  the  finan- 
cial burden  of  the  country.  They  defray  the 
chief  part  of  the  expense  for  public  education, 
religion,  care  of  the  poor,  police  supervision, 
local  courts,  sanitation,  highways,  harbours, 
and  public  works.  More  than  a  fourth  of  the 
municipal  taxation  goes  for  the  maintenance 
of  elementary  schools.  The  care  of  the  poor 
comes  second  and  public  highways  third.  Di- 
rect taxes  on  real  estate,  movable  property, 
and  incomes  furnish  the  bulk  of  municipal  rev- 
enues. Taxes  are  imposed  upon  buildings  and 
real  property  of  every  kind  in  a  certain  ratio 
of  their  value.  Among  indirect  municipal 
taxes  are  fees  for  the  sale  of  liquors,  licenses 
for  the  different  trades,  ecclesiastical  dues, 
and  taxes  on  dogs. 

The  monetary  unit  of  Norway,  Sweden,  and 
Denmark  is  the  krone,  which  is  worth  a  trifle 
more  than  twenty-seven  cents  in  American 
money.  The  krone  is  divided  into  one  hundred 
ore.  The  government  delegates  to  the  Bank 
of  Norway  the  right  to  issue  paper  money. 
While  in  the  main  a  private  concern,  the  gov- 
ernment exercises  certain  control  in  the  ap- 


86  In  Viking  Land 

pointment  of  its  managers.  It  accepts  money 
on  call  but  does  not  pay  interest  thereon.  It 
also  does  business  as  a  loan,  circulation,  and 
discount  bank.  It  takes  charge,  without  com- 
pensation, of  the  money  transactions  of  the 
government  and  of  the  exchange  of  subsidiary 
coin  incumbent  on  the  national  treasury.  The 
Bank  of  Norway  is  located  at  Christiania  and 
it  has  branch  offices  in  a  dozen  towns  in  the 
country. 

The  Mortgage  Bank  of  Norway,  a  semi- 
state  institution,  grants  loans  on  real  estate. 
One-fourth  of  its  capital  is  invested  in  Norwe- 
gian government  bonds.  There  is  also  a  system 
of  savings  banks  in  the  country  for  the  safe- 
keeping and  productive  investment  of  the  small 
savings  of  the  working  people.  Such  banks 
must  have  the  sanction  of  the  king  and  submit 
to  the  regular  inspection  of  the  ministry  of 
finance.  They  loan  deposits  on  mortgage  of 
real  estate  or  on  adequate  personal  security 
with  two  or  more  endorsements.  The  interest 
paid  by  savings  banks  during  the  past  fifty 
years  has  varied  from  five  to  three  per  cent. 
Norway  has  more  than  four  hundred  such 
banks  and  they  represent  half  a  million  de- 
positors. 


CHAPTER   VI 

THE   PEOPLE   OF   NORWAY 

Norway  the  home  of  the  purest  Teutonic  ethnic  stock  —  Phys- 
ical characteristics  of  the  people  —  Stature  —  Mental  char- 
acteristics —  Independence  and  absence  of  'hereditary  aris- 
tocracy —  Talent  recruited  from  the  ranks  of  the  peasants 
—  Moral  traits  of  the  people  —  Honesty  and  kindness  to 
animals  —  Aptitude  for  trade  and  travel  —  Cleanliness,  per- 
sonal and  otherwise  —  Standards  of  sexual  morality  — 
Charities  and  corrections  —  Sanitation  and  health  —  Area 
and  population  of  the  country  —  Emigration  to  the  United 
States  —  Increase  in  the  face  of  emigration  —  Urban  and 
suburban  population  —  Growth  of  the  capital  —  Improve- 
ment of  the  condition  of  the  industrial  classes  —  Child- 
labour  and  the  employment  of  women  —  Insurance  against 
accident  —  Social  and  political  legislation. 

BECAUSE  of  its  geographic  isolation,  the 
Scandinavian  peninsula  is  the  home  of  the  pur- 
est Teutonic  ethnic  stock.  The  Norwegians, 
Icelanders,  Swedes,  and  Danes  are  racially 
closely  related,  and  they  belong  to  the  same 
branch  of  the  Aryan  family  as  the  Germans, 
Flemish,  English,  and  Anglo-Americans.  'The 
most  marked  physical  characteristic  of  the 
Norwegian  is  the  long  and  narrow  head,  the 
degree  of  long  headedness  being  most  marked 

87 


88  -In  Viking  Land 

in  the  interior  of  the  country,  particularly  in 
the  Osterdal  and  the  Gudbransdal.  Sixty  per 
cent,  of  the  inhabitants  of  these  valleys  also 
have  light  hair.  Here  the  stature  is  greatest 
and  the  maximum  of  Teutonic  purity  is  found. 
The  coast  sections  of  the  country,  on  the  other 
hand,  represent  more  race  mixture.  The  head 
is  noticeably  broader,  the  complexion  darker, 
and  the  stature  shorter;  and,  as  Arbo  has 
pointed  out,  the  coast  people  are  more  emo- 
tional, loquacious,  and  susceptible  to  leader- 
ship than  the  stolid,  reserved,  and  independent 
Teutons  of  the  interior  regions. 

The  Norwegians  are  not  only  the  lightest 
people  in  Europe,  in  point  of  colour,  but  they 
enjoy  the  reputation  of  being  the  tallest  peo- 
ple. During  the  civil  war  in  the  United  States, 
it  was  found  that  among  the  enlisted  troops 
the  Norwegians,  after  the  Americans,  had  the 
greatest  stature,  and  that  in  breadth  of  chest 
they  were  excelled  by  none.  It  is  probably 
true,  however,  that  the  Norwegians  who  emi- 
grate represent  the  finest  physical  types,  and 
that  they  possess  a  higher  average  stature  than 
one  finds  in  Norway  to-day,  if  the  most  north- 
erly provinces  are  excepted.  Mr.  Hansen,  a 
Norse  anthropologist,  however,  maintains  that 


The  People  of  Norway  89 

emigration  has  not  lowered  the  physical  effi- 
ciency of  the  nation.  He  points  out  that  re- 
cruiting statistics  indicate  that  in  years  of 
great  emigration  there  is  a  better  quality  in 
those  left  behind  —  a  greater  percentage  of 
able-bodied  men,  fewer  incapable  of  military 
service,  and  fewer  with  narrow  chests  and 
weak  frames. 

The  Norwegians  are  a  very  plain  people  — 
neither  pretty  nor  handsome.  The  women  are 
strong  and  square-built,  and  what  beauty  they 
have  is  of  the  solid  and  substantial  sort.  Of 
the  two  sexes,  the  men  are  the  better  propor- 
tioned, both  in  the  matter  of  figures  and  fea- 
tures. They  have  light  complexions  —  barring 
the  bronzing  of  the  skin  due  to  constant  ex- 
posure, —  light  hair,  blue  eyes,  and  reasonably 
well-formed  noses.  Both  men  and  women  have 
frank  and  open  countenances. 

The  most  marked  mental  characteristics 
are  clear  insight,  unconquerable  pertinacity, 
dogged  obstinacy,  absolute  honesty,  and  a 
sturdy  sense  of  independence.  Bjb'rnson  has 
well  remarked  concerning  his  people:  "  Opin- 
ions are  slowly  formed  and  tenaciously  held, 
and  much  independence  is  developed  by  the 
rigorous  isolation  of  farm  from  farm,  each  on 


90  In  Viking  Land 

its  own  freehold  ground,  unannoyed  and  un- 
contradicted  by  any  one.  The  way  the  people 
work  together  in  the  fields,  in  the  forests,  and 
in  their  large  rooms  has  given  them  a  charac- 
teristic stamp  of  confidence  in  each  other." 
This  solitary  and  uneventful  life  inclines  the 
people  to  be  phlegmatic;  yet  when  occasions 
arise,  calling  for  quick  resource  and  prompt 
action,  they  usually  meet  such  situations  ex- 
cellently well. 

Independence  and  frankness  characterize  all 
classes  of  society.  Norway  has  no  hereditary 
aristocracy.  In  1821  it  was  provided  that  those 
holding  titles  might  be  allowed  to  retain  them 
during  their  lives  but  they  could  not  transmit 
them  to  their  children.  The  Norse  character 
has  never  been  marred  by  the  yoke  of  slavery. 
The  feudal  system,  with  its  serfdom,  never  got 
a  foothold  in  the  north.  The  people  have  al- 
ways been  small  land-holders  which  has  devel- 
oped among  them  an  independence  of  charac- 
ter not  found  in  countries  where  the  mass  of 
the  inhabitants  have  no  direct  property  inter- 
ests. There  is  no  class  in  Norway  correspond- 
ing to  the  country  gentlemen  of  England  or  to 
the  grand  seigneurs  and  provincial  noblemen 


NATIONAL   COSTUME    IN   THE   HARDANGER. 


The  People  of  Norway  91 

of  the  continent.  The  wealthiest  landlord  is 
only  a  peasant. 

The  absence  of  class  lines  has  played  a  lead- 
ing role  in  the  wide-spread  intelligence  of  the 
Norwegian  people  and  the  high  place  they  oc- 
cupy in  the  culture-history  of  Europe.  The 
clergy  of  the  country  are  almost  entirely  re- 
cruited from  the  ranks  of  the  peasantry.  The 
great  national  university  at  Christiania  is  pat- 
ronized by  the  sons  and  daughters  of  the  hum- 
blest farmers.  Jorgen  Moe,  the  well-known 
bishop  and  hymn-writer;  Ivar  Aasen,  the 
greatest  of  Norse  linguists ;  Arne  Garborg,  the 
author;  Vinje,  the  lyric  poet;  Svendsen,  the 
music  composer;  Skrevsrud,  the  indefatigable 
missionary;  the  painters  Dahl  and  Skredsvig 
and  the  sculptor  Skeibrok;  Thommessen,  the 
gifted  editor;  Baard  Haugland,  the  financier, 
and  Sivert  Nilsen,  the  statesman,  were  all  the 
sons  of  humble  peasants. 

Bjornson  is  probably  correct  when  he  asserts 
that  "  no  other  country  possesses  so  many  men 
in  official  positions  —  doctors,  clergymen,  engi- 
neers, teachers,  and  merchants  —  who  are 
peasant-born,  often  from  the  tenant  and  work- 
ing classes ;  and  that  in  no  other  country  have 
so  many  eminent  poets,  artists,  men  of  science, 


92  In  Viking  Land 

and  statesmen  risen  directly  from  the  peas- 
antry." Norway,  like  the  United  States,  is 
distinctly  a  land  of  opportunity;  but  the  eco- 
nomic conditions  of  the  country  and  wise  legis- 
lation have  prevented  the  development  of  na- 
tional diseases  due  to  excessive  and  vulgar 
wealth.  Poverty  and  pietism  alone  have  been 
left  to  influence  the  Norwegian  character. 

Honesty  is  one  of  the  valuable  assets  of  the 
Norwegian  people.  Attempts  at  extortion  are 
so  rare  that  tourists,  accustomed  to  the  pro- 
verbial dishonesty  of  the  Latin  races,  find 
travel  in  Norway  a  joy.  An  English  traveller 
relates  this  typical  incident:  He  had  lost  his 
purse  shortly  after  leaving  Vossevangen  for 
Stalheim.  Altogether  unconscious  of  his  loss, 
he  walked  on  placidly.  Suddenly,  hearing  hur- 
ried footsteps  following  him,  he  turned  about 
and  faced  a  lad  who  thrust  the  pocketbook  into 
the  owner's  palm  and  disappeared  before  the 
Englishman  got  a  coin  from  his  pocket  to  re- 
ward the  boy  for  his  honesty.  The  Norwegian 
youth  very  properly  did  not  expect  a  reward 
for  doing  the  only  thing  open  to  his  mind  upon 
finding  the  purse. 

Kindness  to  horses  is  another  virtue  of  the 
Norwegian  people.  In  their  gentle  considera- 


The  People  of  Norway  93 

tion  for  and  their  affectionate  treatment  of 
beasts  of  burden  they  excel  all  other  Christian 
races.  Only  among  Mohammedans  is  the  trav- 
eller likely  to  find  such  consideration  for 
horses.  An  English  writer  remarks  in  this 
connection:  "  No  blows,  no  sore  backs,  no 
harsh  tones  disturb  the  perfect  composure  be- 
tween man  and  beast.  Chiefly  this  is  owing  to 
the  good  nature  and  sweet  temper  of  the  drivers 
and  horse-owners;  but  it  may  be  left  to  spec- 
ulation how  far  these  qualities  here,  as  in  Mo- 
hammedan lands,  are  owing  to  the  absence  of 
public-houses  and  the  universal  sobriety  of  the 
people. ' ' 

The  Norwegians,  like  the  Swiss,  have  marked 
aptitude  for  trade  and  travel.  The  business 
interests  of  the  country  are  not  in  the  hands 
of  the  Hebrews,  the  Germans,  and  the  English, 
as  in  so  many  other  lands.  And  it  is  doubtful 
if  other  Europeans  travel  as  much  as  the  Nor- 
wegians. They  represent  a  high  development 
of  the  migratory  instinct  —  as  seamen  to  the 
different  ports  of  the  world;  as  fishermen  on 
great  whaling  expeditions;  as  merchants  in 
search  of  new  markets;  as  explorers  seeking 
the  poles  of  the  earth;  as  men  of  letters,  sci- 
ence, and  art,  at  the  great  culture-centres,  and 


94  In  Viking  Land 

as  emigrants  seeking  homes  and  fortunes  in 
distant  lands.  And  wherever  they  go,  they 
carry  with  them  their  characteristic  frankness, 
honesty,  and  good  nature. 

Those  who  have  known  the  Norwegians  at 
home  and  abroad  will  agree  with  Frank  Vin- 
cent that  few  peoples  are  as  honourable  and 
amiable  and  as  free  from  destructive  passions 
and  pernicious  prejudices.  They  are  fond  of 
a  quiet  simple  life  'with  kinsfolk  and  friends 
and  home  employments  and  enjoyments.  Their 
amusements  and  diversions  are  of  the  quiet  and 
healthy  sort;  and  now  that  intemperance  is 
rapidly  decreasing,  marked  improvement  in 
the  social  condition  of  the  people  may  be  ex- 
pected. 

Like  the  other  Teutonic  peoples,  the  Nor- 
wegians take  high  rank  in  the  matter  of  cleanli- 
ness; but  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  they  give  so 
much  of  it  to  their  houses,  their  ships,  and 
their  cattle,  and  so  little  to  their  persons. 
Tooth  brushes,  nail  cleaners,  and  other  useful 
toilet  articles  are  altogether  too  little  known, 
and  the  bath  is  likely  to  be  the  exception  rather 
than  the  rule.  Tobacco-chewing  is  very  gen- 
eral. Even  during  religious  services  the  filthy 
habit  is  practised.  The  men  chew  studiously 


NATIONAL   COSTUME    IN    TELEMARKEN. 


The  People  of  Norway  95 

throughout  the  service;  and  the  audible  and 
frequent  expectorations  on  the  floors  of  the 
pews  is  anything  but  agreeable  to  foreigners, 
whatever  may  be  the  sentiments  of  the  natives. 
Norwegians  who  have  not  been  in  America  do 
not  take  the  name  of  God  in  vain.  When  angry 
they  do  not  swear;  they  simply  reprove  the 
offender  without  cursing  him. 

Norway  does  not  have  a  high  standard  of 
sexual  morality.  An  unusually  large  number 
of  children  are  born  out  of  wedlock,  but  prosti- 
tution is  less  in  evidence  than  in  most  Euro- 
pean countries,  and  there  are  no  vice-husband- 
ships;  for,  like  Caesar's  wife,  the  Norse  women 
are  above  suspicion.  Such  offences  as  infanti- 
cide, incest,  and  rape  figure  rather  prominently 
in  the  crime  statistics  of  the  country.  Poverty, 
on  the  other  hand,  does  not  seem  to  exist,  if 
one  is  to  judge  by  the  absence  of  beggars.  I 
do  not  recall  that  I  have  ever  seen  a  beggar 
in  Norway.  The  government  has  long  dealt  in 
a  wholesome  way  with  beggars,  tramps,  and 
drunkards  who  shirk  their  financial  responsi- 
bility to  their  dependents.  Able-bodied  men 
are  required  to  support  not  only  their  immedi- 
ate families,  but  also  their  divorced  wives  and 
illegitimate  children.  If  they  cannot  find  work, 


96  In  Viking  Land 

they  are  required  to  accept  service  on  the  im- 
mense tracts  of  government  land  that  are  being 
brought  into  cultivation.  If  a  man  refuses  to 
do  the  work  assigned  to  him,  leaves  it  without 
reason,  or  is  dismissed  through  bad  conduct, 
and  within  a  year  either  he  or  his  dependents 
come  on  the  poor  law  for  relief,  he  is  com- 
mitted to  a  work-house  where  his  liberty  is 
forfeited  and  begging  is  impossible,  and  where 
he  must  face  either  work,  hunger,  or  punish- 
ment. 

The  laws  against  tramps  are  so  stringent 
that  Norway  is  without  the  brotherhood  of  rov- 
ing hoboes.  Persons  found  roaming  about 
the  country  without  definite  homes  and  occupa- 
tions are  committed  to  work-houses  for  terms 
varying  from  three  to  six  years.  Aid  is  ren- 
dered to  the  worthy  poor  by  the  municipalities. 
The  national  government  makes  an  appropria- 
tion to  municipalities  to  be  lent  to  persons  with- 
out means  for  the  erection  or  acquisition  of 
houses  of  their  own  and  the  purchase  of  plots 
of  ground.  But  both  the  national  and  the  local 
governments  have  wisely  checked  vagrancy  and 
reduced  pauperism  to  a  minimum. 

Norway  has  an  excellent  system  of  district 
physicians.  Large  tracts  of  the  country  are 


The  People  of  Norway  97 

very  sparsely  settled;  and,  but  for  the  inter- 
vention of  the  government,  they  would  be  with- 
out medical  assistance.  The  country  is  divided 
into  districts  and  provision  is  made  for  medical 
attendance  of  the  sick  poor  and  the  lunatics 
maintained  at  public  expense,  and  the  super- 
vision of  persons  suffering  from  epidemic 
diseases.  For  purposes  of  obstetric  aid,  the 
country  is  likewise  divided  into  midwife  dis- 
tricts, each  with  its  duly  appointed  midwife. 
Vaccination  is  compulsory  in  Norway,  and  the 
vaccination  certificate  must  be  produced  before 
a  child  can  be  confirmed  or  a  marriage  cere- 
mony performed. 

In  spite  of  the  absence  of  wholesome  house- 
hold sanitation,  Norway  is  a  healthy  country. 
Its  death-rate  is  low,  being  surpassed  only  by 
Sweden  among  the  countries  of  Europe,  in 
spite  of  a  comparatively  high  death-rate  from 
drowning  due  to  the  shipping,  lumber  indus- 
tries, and  fisheries.  This  of  course  affects  al- 
most entirely  the  male  part  of  the  population. 
The  climate  of  the  country  is  unfavourable  to 
the  spread  of  epidemic  and  endemic  diseases. 
Asiatic  cholera  and  the  yellow  fever  are  un- 
known and  ague  and  dysentery  seldom  occur. 
Acute  bronchial  catarrhs  are  among  the  most 


98  In  Viking  Land 

frequent  epidemic  diseases,  and  among  chronic 
diseases  tuberculosis  occupies  the  most  promi- 
nent place.  Leprosy,  formerly  very  prevalent, 
has  decreased  markedly  during  recent  years. 
With  an  area  of  124,495  square  miles  - 
rather  more  than  three  per  cent,  of  Europe  — 
her  population  at  the  last  census  was  only 
2,240,032,  or  less  than  one-half  of  one  per  cent, 
of  the  continent.  Thus,  it  will  be  seen,  the 
country  is  very  thinly  settled.  Tromso  and  the 
northern  provinces  are  the  most  sparsely  set- 
tled and  the  districts  on  the  east  and  south 
sides  of  the  Trondhjem  fjord  are  the  most 
thickly  populated.  Two-thirds  of  the  people 
live  upon  the  coast  and  fjords,  a  fourth  in  the 
interior  lowlands,  and  the  balance  —  about  ten 
per  cent.  —  in  the  mountain  districts.  Only 
one-fourth  of  the  population  of  the  country 
live  in  towns.  Most  of  the  large  towns  are  on 
the  coast  and  fjords,  the  only  inland  towns  of 
consequence  being  Kongsberg  and  Hamar. 
There  is  but  one  city  in  the  country  with  more 
than  one  hundred  thousand  inhabitants  — 
Christiania,  with  a  population  of  227,626  —  and 
only  four  above  twenty  thousand  —  Bergen, 
Trondhjem,  Stavanger,  and  Dranunen.  Only 


The  People  of  Norway  99 

thirteen  of  the  sixty  odd  towns  of  Norway  have 
a  population  of  over  ten  thousand. 

About  twenty  thousand  Norwegians  emi- 
grate annually  to  the  United  States  and  some- 
thing like  fifteen  hundred  to  Canada  and  other 
countries.  The  large  excess  of  births  over 
deaths,  however,  gives  the  country  a  healthy 
increase.  Half  the  people  of  Norway  are  mar- 
ried, as  against  sixty-six  per  cent,  in  Hungary 
and  thirty-nine  per  cent,  in  Ireland.  The  num- 
ber of  divorced  husbands  and  wives  is  less  in 
Norway  than  in  any  country  in  Europe.  Sixty 
per  cent,  of  the  people  are  wage-earners; 
twenty  per  cent,  are  young  children;  sixteen 
per  cent,  are  attending  schools  or  other  educa- 
tional institutions;  three  per  cent,  are  sup- 
ported in  part  or  entirely  by  municipalities  or 
are  otherwise  unproductive ;  and  only  three  per 
cent,  are  persons  of  independent  means. 

In  spite  of  the  steady  stream  of  emigration 
to  the  United  States,  the  population  of  Norway 
has  more  than  doubled  during  the  past  fifty 
years ;  and  growth  has  been  most  marked  dur- 
ing the  periods  of  greatest  emigration.  During 
the  first  part  of  the  past  century  the  annual 
growth  was  less  than  two-tenths  of  one  per 


100  In  Viking  Land 

cent.;  whereas  during  the  latter  part  of  the 
century  it  had  nearly  trebled.  As  elsewhere 
the  growth  in  population  has  been  greatest  in 
the  towns.  This,  as  Amneus  has  explained,  is 
not  due  to  the  comparatively  greater  number 
of  births  in  the  towns,  as  this  advantage  is 
counterbalanced  by  the  greater  mortality,  but 
to  the  influx  of  persons  seeking  employment. 
The  Norwegian  towns  have  grown  more  rap- 
idly during  the  past  century  than  the  towns  in 
either  Sweden  or  Denmark.  Growth  was 
greatest  during  the  decade  from  1855  to  1865; 
from  1865  to  1890  there  was  a  falling  off  in 
the  rate  of  increase,  due  to  the  emigration  from 
the  towns  to  America;  but  during  the  past 
twenty  years  the  increase  in  the  population 
of  the  towns  has  been  more  marked. 

Increase  has  been  greatest  in  Christiania. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  past  century  the  cap- 
ital had  only  12,423  inhabitants;  at  the  close 
of  the  century  221,255;  an  annual  increase 
of  three  per  cent.  The  growth  of  Bergen  has 
been  less  rapid;  at  the  beginning  of  the  cen- 
tury it  had  18,128  inhabitants;  at  the  close  of 
the  century  68,000.  Eemarks  Mr.  Amneus * 

1  See  his  interesting  study  on  the  population  of  Norway  in 
"Norway:  Official  Publication  for  the  Paris  Exposition,  1900." 


A    BRIDE    IN    THE    NUMEDAL. 


The  People  of  Norway  101 

in  this  connection:  "  If  the  population  be 
grouped  according  to  the  natural  character  of 
the  inhabited  districts,  it  will  be  found  that 
during  the  course  of  the  century,  the  coast 
population  shows  the  most  rapid  increase,  the 
inland  fjord  districts  somewhat  less,  while  the 
lowland,  and  still  more  the  mountain  popula- 
tion, has  increased  much  more  slowly.  The 
emigration  that  has  been  going  on  of  late  years 
from  the  last  two  has  even  in  some  places 
caused  a  decrease  in  the  actual  number." 

The  national  parliament  has  aimed  not  only 
to  improve  the  economic  condition  of  the  farm- 
ers, and  thus  diminish  emigration,  but  it  has 
also  during  late  years  tried  to  protect  working- 
men  from  the  dangers  and  over-exertion  that 
factory  labour  so  often  entails.  Children 
under  fourteen  are  not  permitted  to  work  in 
factories  at  all.  Women  cannot  be  employed 
in  underground  work;  they  are  not  permitted 
to  care  for  or  take  charge  of  machines,  and 
they  cannot  be  employed  in  factories  for  the 
first  six  weeks  after  confinement.  Men  are  not 
allowed  to  work  from  six  o'clock  in  the  eve- 
ning before  a  Sunday  or  holy  day  to  ten  o  'clock 
of  the  evening  of  the  holy  day.  These  laws 
are  enforced  by  government  inspectors  with 


102  In  Viking  Land 

technical  training,  and  their  infringement  is 
punishable  by  fines  not  exceeding  three  hun- 
dred dollars.  Special  insurance  provision  has 
also  been  made  against  accidents  for  work- 
men in  mines  and  quarries,  in  timber-floating, 
in  railway  and  tramway  work,  and  in  other 
industrial  lines.  Unfortunately  agriculture, 
fishing,  and  shipping  are  not  included. 

The  administration  of  such  insurance  is  in 
the  hands  of  a  commission  appointed  by  the 
national  government.  The  indemnification  is 
intended  to  cover  the  expenses  of  medical 
treatment  from  the  fourth  week  after  the  ac- 
cident, the  sick-clubs  bearing  the  expenses  dur- 
ing the  first  month,  and  sixty  per  cent,  of  the 
wages  of  the  disabled  workman.  In  case  of 
death,  the  insurance  covers  the  funeral  ex- 
penses and  an  annuity  of  fifty  per  cent,  of  the 
dead  man's  wages.  There  are  also  in  Norway 
various  sick-clubs  for  the  workmen  and  burial- 
clubs  and  pension  funds  for  the  widows  of 
employees.  There  has  been  some  agitation  of 
the  question  of  insurance  against  want  of  em- 
ployment, and  in  some  towns  employment  bu- 
reaus have  been  established  by  the  municipal 
governments.  There  are  also  municipal  arbi- 


The  People  of  Norway  103 

tration  courts  for  the  mediation  of  differences 
between  employers  and  employed. 

These  are  some  of  the  measures  that  this 
very  democratic  country  has  instituted  for  the 
welfare  of  the  Norwegian  people.  The  social 
and  political  legislation  of  recent  years  has 
been  inspired  by  a  sincere  desire  to  elevate 
and  improve  the  masses  of  the  common  people 
and  to  make  it  possible  for  them  to  remain  in 
Norway  and  live  with  comparative  comfort. 
With  the  unfavourable  physiographic  and  eco- 
nomic conditions  pointed  out  elsewhere  in  this 
work,  the  struggle  for  existence  is  at  best  hard ; 
but  an  evolution  of  environment  as  well  as  of 
organism  is  possible,  and  the  statesmen  of 
Gamle  Norge  are  unquestionably  doing  much 
to  minimize  the  hardships  of  the  scattered  pop- 
ulation of  the  country. 


CHAPTER   VII 

LAPPS    AND    THE    POLAR    REGIONS 

Polar  sections  of  Norway  and  the  Lapps  —  Climate  of  the 
polar  regions  —  Rainfall  and  fog  —  The  North  Cape  and  the 
midnight  sun  —  The  aurora  borealis  —  The  nomadic  Lapps 
—  Physical  and  mental  characteristics  —  Dress  of  the  men 
and  the  women  —  Mountain  Lapps  and  Sea  Lapps  —  The 
reindeer  in  the  economic  life  of  the  people  —  Low  state  of 
civilization  in  Finmark  —  The  Finns  and  their  habits. 

NEARLY  half  the  coast  line  of  Norway  lies 
within  the  polar  circle.  But  the  climate  is  less 
severe  than  might  be  expected.  In  the  same 
latitude  in  which  Sir  John  Franklin  perished 
in  the  arctic  regions  of  North  America  and  in 
which  lie  the  frozen  tundra  plains  of  Russian 
Siberia,  the  fjords  of  the  west  coast  of  Norway 
never  freeze  over  except  in  their  upper  ex- 
tremities. Through  large  portions  of  northern 
Norway  the  sun  does  not  set  in  summer  or  rise 
in  winter.  The  summers,  however,  are  not  hot;1 
for,  while  the  sun  does  not  set,  it  warms  only 
at  mid-day,  simply  shining  the  rest  of  the  day 
as  a  golden  orb  without  heat.  The  mean  sum- 

104 


Lapps  and  the  Polar  Regions     105 

mer  temperature  in  Finmark  is  53°  Fahrenheit, 
and  the  mean  winter  temperature  about  5°,  al- 
though the  thermometer  on  the  coldest  days 
may  drop  as  low  as  60°  below  zero. 

The  rainfall  in  Finmark  is  slight  as  com- 
pared with  the  rest  of  Norway  —  twelve  to  six- 
teen inches  —  but  fogs  are  frequent  along  the 
coast  and  they  are  likely  to  occur  during  the 
tourist  season  to  the  North  Cape.  In  conse- 
quence, not  more  than  one  out  of  every  four 
excursion  parties,  making  the  trip  to  the  north- 
ernmost part  of  Europe,  see  the  chief  object  of 
the  long  trip  —  the  midnight  sun  at  the  North 
Cape.  Mr.  William  Eleroy  Curtis,  an  Ameri- 
can traveller,  remarks  in  this  connection:  "  Of 
course  people  who  have  travelled  all  that  dis- 
tance cannot  be  expected  to  confess  their  fail- 
ure. In  fact  I  have  never  met  anybody  who 
has  gone  to  the  North  Cape  without  seeing  the 
midnight  sun.  General  absolution  is  granted 
to  tourists  to  lie  about  it  to  other  travellers  and 
to  the  folks  at  home;  but  the  captain  admitted 
to  me  that  they  only  saw  it  twice  last  year,  and 
that  when  they  saw  it  four  times  in  a  season  it 
was  considered  a  remarkable  triumph."  Bar- 
ring fogs,  the  midnight  sun  is  visible  at  the 
North  Cape  from  the  last  of  May  to  the  last  of 


106  In  Viking  Land 

July  and  at  Hammerfest  and  Tromso  a  few 
days  less.  As  far  south  as  the  arctic  circle  it 
does  not  set  for  a  brief  period  during  the  sum- 
mer; and  at  Trondhjem  it  merely  dips  below 
the  horizon  at  midnight  for  a  few  moments. 

The  North  Cape  is  the  northern  extremity 
of  a  rugged  barren  star-shaped  island  called 
Magero.  The  island  is  separated  from  the 
mainland  by  a  narrow  channel  and  is  in  lati- 
tude 71°  10'  12".  The  animal  life  of  the  island 
consists  of  reindeer,  ermine,  and  hare;  and  a 
few  Norwegian  and  Lapp  fishermen  live  on 
the  eastern  side  of  the  island.  The  cape  proper 
is  a  huge  mass  of  dark  mica  slate  so  precipitous 
on  its  weather-beaten  northern  and  western 
sides  that  it  can  only  be  scaled  from  the  south 
or  east.  Its  surface  is  a  plateau  1,000  feet 
above  sea-level  and  is  strewn  with  small  sand- 
stone, mica  slate,  and  quartz.  Here,  facing  the 
North  Pole,  is  the  red  granite  column  which 
commemorates  the  visit  of  the  late  King  Oscar 
II  to  the  island  in  1871 ;  and  a  beacon  records 
the  fact  that  twenty  years  later  the  island  was 
visited  by  Emperor  William  II.  of  Germany. 

Throughout  the  polar  regions  of  Norway  the 
aurora  borealis  produces  beautiful  luminous 
effects  during  the  cold  winter  nights.  The 


Lapps  and  the  Polar  Regions      107 

aurora  forms  an  arch  of  coloured  light  over  the 
magnetic  pole  at  a  height  in  the  atmosphere  of 
from  fifty  to  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles.  Col- 
oured fringes  and  streamers  shoot  from  the 
arch  in  all  directions,  spreading  over  the  sky 
and  again  shrinking  back  with  a  pulsing  motion. 
The  aurora  is  caused  presumably  by  electrical 
discharges  in  the  rare  air  and  it  very  closely 
resembles  the  glow  seen  when  a  current  trav- 
erses a  vacuum  tube.  Professor  Lemstrom,  a 
Finnish  physicist,  has  in  fact  produced  the 
aurora  by  covering  the  top  of  Mt.  Oratunturi 
in  the  north  of  Finland  with  a  network  of  wires 
and  sending  a  current  of  electricity  from  the 
wires  to  the  earth. 

Bayard  Taylor,  who  made  foreign  countries 
so  familiar  to  American  audiences  fifty  years 
ago  by  his  books  and  lectures,  gives  this  vivid 
description  of  the  aurora  borealis  which  he  wit- 
nessed in  Norwegian  Lapland :  "I  opened  my 
eyes,  looked  upward,  and  saw  a  narrow  belt  or 
scarf  of  silver  fire  stretching  directly  across 
the  zenith,  with  its  loose  frayed  ends  slowly 
swaying  to  and  fro  down  the  slopes  of  the  sky. 
Presently  it  began  to  waver,  bending  back  and 
forth,  sometimes  with  a  quick  springing  mo- 
tion, as  if  testing  its  elasticity.  Now  it  took  the 


108  In  Viking  Land 

shape  of  a  bow,  now  undulated  into  Hogarth's 
line  of  beauty,  brightening  and  fading  in  its 
sinuous  motion,  and  finally  formed  a  shep- 
herd's crook,  the  end  of  which  suddenly  began 
to  separate  and  fall  off,  as  if  driven  by  a  strong 
wind,  until  the  whole  belt  shot  away  in  long, 
drifting  lines  of  fiery  snow.  It  then  gathered 
again  into  a  dozen  dancing  fragments,  which 
alternately  advanced  and  retreated,  shot  hither 
and  thither,  against  and  across  each  other, 
blazed  out  in  yellow  and  rosy  gleams,  or  paled 
again,  playing  a  thousand  fantastic  tricks,  as  if 
guided  by  some  wild  whim.  We  lay  silent  with 
upturned  faces  watching  this  wonderful  spec- 
tacle. Suddenly  the  scattered  lights  ran  to- 
gether, as  if  by  common  impulse,  joined  their 
bright  ends  and  fell  in  a  broad,  luminous  cur- 
tain, straight  downward  through  the  air,  until 
its  fringed  hem  swung  apparently  only  a  few 
yards  over  our  heads." 

The  polar  circle  is  occupied  chiefly  by  the 
nomadic  Lapps  who  belong  to  the  Finnic  group 
of  the  Tauranian  family,  being  racially  allied 
with  the  Samoyedes  of  Siberia  and  the  Eskimos 
of  North  America.  They  are  short  in  stature, 
measuring  from  four  feet  six  inches  to  five 
feet;  they  have  the  yellowish  brown  complex- 


Lapps  and  the  Polar  Regions      109 

ion  of  the  Mongolian  race;  the  head  is  large 
and  broad,  the  nose  short  and  flat,  the  cheek 
bones  high,  and  the  mouth  broad.  The  black 
eyes  are  obliquely  set,  and  the  hair  is  long  and 
stiff,  the  men  having  scanty  beards.  In  spite 
of  universal  stoutness,  the  Lapps  are  extremely 
agile  and  they  possess  great  muscular  powers. 
Of  the  women  it  has  been  remarked  that  good 
looking  Lapps  are  like  meteors,  —  of  very 
short  duration.  Exposure  and  intemperance 
cause  them  to  age  prematurely.  The  best- 
looking  Lapps  are  those  representing  an  ad- 
mixture with  Finns  or  Norwegians. 

The  women  wear  long  tunics  of  corduroy, 
ornamented  with  red  and  yellow  borders  and 
confined  at  the  waist  by  a  belt ;  under  the  tunic 
pantaloons  are  worn,  since  open  garments 
would  expose  them  unduly  to  the  cold;  the 
headgear  is  a  woollen  cap  projecting  above  the 
crown,  and  pointed  shoes  are  worn  which  are 
tied  about  the  ankles  by  strips  of  reindeer 
leather.  The  men  wear  coats  and  trousers  of 
reindeer  skin,  the  fur  worn  within ;  boots  made 
of  the  reindeer's  head  —  the  toughest  part  of 
the  animal  —  and  caps  of  skin  and  wool.  In 
the  winter  they  wear  an  extra  suit  with  the 
hair  outside.  Neither  men  nor  women  wear 


110  In  Viking  Land 

undergarments,  and  the  clothing  is  rarely  re- 
moved until  it  is  worn  out.  Like  all  primitive 
people,  the  Lapps  are  very  fond  of  gaudy 
colours  and  highly  coloured  embroideries. 

There  are  two  reasonably  distinct  groups  of 
Lapps  in  Finmark  and  the  polar  regions  —  the 
Sea  Lapps  and  the  Fjeld  or  Mountain  Lapps. 
The  Sea  Lapps  are  fishermen  and  inhabit  the 
islands  and  the  fjords  of  the  northwestern 
coast.  They  are  much  more  numerous  than  the 
Mountain  Lapps ;  and  having  more  or  less  set- 
tled abodes,  they  represent  the  higher  civiliza- 
tion. The  government  treats  them  as  subjects 
of  Norway  and  requires  them  to  provide  rein- 
deer and  sledges  for  travel  at  a  fixed  tariff, 
much  after  the  manner  of  the  posting  system 
in  the  central  and  southern  provinces  elsewhere 
described.  The  Mountain  Lapps  depend  en- 
tirely upon  their  reindeer  and  hunting  for  their 
livelihood.  Lapp  villages  look  like  small 
rounded  hills.  The  houses  are  very  simply  con- 
structed. Saplings  are  stuck  in  the  ground  and 
drawn  together  at  the  top,  leaving  a  small 
opening  for  the  escape  of  the  smoke,  and  the 
whole  is  covered  with  bark  and  turf. 

The  reindeer  supply  practically  all  the  needs 
of  the  Lapps.  They  are  the  sole  beast  of  bur- 


A    GROUP    OF    SEA    LAPPS. 


A    GROUP    OF   MOUNTAIN    LAPPS. 


Lapps  and  the  Polar  Regions     ill 

den  of  the  natives ;  Lapps  drink  the  milk 
and  make  it  into  butter  and  cheese;  the  whey 
is  fermented  and  distilled  into  an  intoxicating 
liquor ;  the  fresh,  smoked,  and  dried  flesh  forms 
the  staple  of  food;  the  skins  are  made  into 
tents,  blankets,  and  clothing;  household  uten- 
sils are  made  from  the  antlers;  the  intestines 
are  made  into  gloves,  the  bladders  into  bags, 
and  the  tendons  into  thread.  Several  hundred 
reindeer  are  necessary  to  maintain  a  family, 
and  wealthy  Lapps  possess  herds  of  from  one 
to  two  thousand. 

The  reindeer  are  delicately  formed  animals 
with  huge  branching  antlers  which  are  as  much 
as  four  feet  long  and  contrast  strikingly  with 
the  small  bodies  of  the  animals.  Most  of  the 
reindeer  are  of  a  dark  slate  colour,  although  a 
few  are  brown  or  white.  The  foot  of  the  rein- 
deer resembles  that  of  a  camel  and  is  excel- 
lently adapted  for  travel  over  the  snow,  being 
broad,  cloven,  and  flexible,  the  separated  divi- 
sions spreading  out  so  as  to  present  a  resisting 
surface,  when  the  foot  is  set  down  on  the  snow, 
and  falling  together  when  it  is  lifted.  The  wild 
reindeer  is  somewhat  larger  than  the  cultivated 
variety  and  lives  about  twice  as  long.  The  milk 
is  very  rich,  although  each  doe  gives  a  compar- 


112  In  Viking  Land 

atively  small  quantity,  and  she  is  milked  not 
more  than  twice  or  three  times  a  week.  A 
strong  oily  cheese  is  made  from  the  milk.  The 
does  are  never  made  to  labour  but  are  kept  in 
the  woods  for  milking  and  breeding.  The  cas- 
trated male  deer  are  used  as  beasts  of  burden. 

A  reindeer  will  carry  a  burden  of  about  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  pounds,  but  hitched  to 
a  sledge  he  will  draw  twice  that  weight.  The 
speed  is  not  remarkable  —  about  ten  miles  an 
hour  for  the  entire  day.  He  is  a  stupid  animal 
and  it  takes  a  long  time  to  train  him  for  domes- 
tic uses.  The  food  of  the  reindeer  is  a  species 
of  moss  which  grows  abundantly  in  the  polar 
regions.  In  the  winter  the  moss  is  obtained  by 
scraping  away  the  snow  with  the  feet  and  nose, 
for  the  sense  of  smell  is  remarkably  acute,  and 
the  moss  will  be  unerringly  located  under  snow 
many  feet  deep. 

In  summer  the  reindeer  are  driven  to  the 
mountains,  not  merely  to  find  more  abundant 
patches  of  the  white  lichen,  but  to  avoid  the 
attacks  of  the  gad  fly  and  other  insect  pests. 
During  the  summer  the  gad  fly  deposits  its 
eggs  on  the  skin  of  the  animal  from  which  the 
larva  is  hatched.  The  insect  causes  intolerable 
suffering,  and  the  only  relief  the  animal  can  get 


Lapps  and  the  Polar  Regions      113 

is  by  plunging  into  water.  The  greatest  ene- 
mies of  the  reindeer  are  the  wolves  which 
destroy  many  thousand  of  wild  and  domesti- 
cated reindeer  every  winter.  The  reindeer  are 
herded  by  the  aid  of  the  Lapp  dogs,  a  small 
variety  of  curs  covered  with  long  thick  hair. 
They  are  hardy,  strong,  and  healthy,  and  are 
singularly  brave  and  intelligent. 

In  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  Lapps  have  occu- 
pied the  polar  regions  of  Scandinavia  for  thou- 
sands of  years,  they  are  centuries  behind  the 
Norwegians  in  matters  of  civilization.  An 
English  skipper,  who  visited  Finmark  four 
hundred  years  ago,  described  the  Lapps  as  "  a 
wild  people,  which  neither  knew  God  nor  yet 
good  order :  and  these  people  live  in  tents  made 
of  deer  skins :  and  they  have  no  certain  habita- 
tions, but  continue  in  herds  of  one  hundred  and 
two  hundred.  And  they  are  a  people  of  small 
stature,  and  are  clothed  in  deers'  skins,  and 
drink  nothing  but  water,  and  eat  no  bread,  but 
flesh  all  raw."  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  since 
they  have  been  brought  into  more  frequent 
commercial  relations  with  the  Christian  races 
from  the  south,  the  Lapps  no  longer  "  drink 
nothing  but  water. " 


114  In  Viking  Land 

There  are  also  some  Finns  in  the  polar  sec- 
tions of  Norway.  They  are  taller,  more  sym- 
metrically built,  and  possess  more  intelligence 
than  the  Lapps,  although  of  the  same  general 
racial  stock.  They  are  industrious,  thrifty,  and 
honest;  but  during  late  years  the  emigration 
from  Finland  to  Finmark  has  been  slight,  and 
during  recent  times  they  have  become  assimi- 
lated with  the  Norwegians,  so  that  the  pure 
Finno-Ugrian  scarcely  exists  to-day  in  Nor- 
way; but  anthropologically  the  Finnish  ethnic 
element  in  the  population  can  still  be  distinctly 
traced. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

NORSE    RELIGIONS :    OLD    AND  NEW 

Heathenism,  Christianity,  and  the  faith  of  Martin  Luther  — 
Norway  the  most  Protestant  country  in  the  world  —  Early 
Scandinavian  mythology  —  Odin  and  Thor  the  supreme  gods 

—  Resemblance  to  their  Greek  confreres  —  Minor  Norse  gods 

—  The  ancient  heathen  temple   and   its   service  —  Sacrifice 
the  chief  rite  —  Introduction  of  Christianity  into  Norway  — 
The  German  reformation  movement  —  Creed  of  the   Evan- 
gelical   Lutheran   church  —  Dissent    and   the   Haugianere  — 
Ecclesiastical   divisions    of   Norway  —  Confirmation   in   the 
life  of  the  child  —  Compensation  and  duties  of  the  clergy. 

THE  religious  life  of  the  Norse  people  since 
the  historic  period  has  centred  around  hea- 
thenism, Christianity,  and  the  reformed  faith 
of  Martin  Luther.  Heathenism,  as  was  pointed 
out  in  a  previous  chapter,  died  hard  in  the 
north;  and  yet  Norway  is  probably  the  most 
Christian  country  in  the  world.  In  a  popula- 
tion of  two  and  a  quarter  millions  there  are 
less  than  one  hundred  Hebrews.  Protestantism 
likewise  made  slow  progress  at  first  among  the 
Norse  people;  yet  Norway  is  to-day  probably 
the  most  Protestant  country  in  the  world,  there 

116 


116  In  Viking  Land 

being  less  than  two  thousand  Roman  Catholics 
in  the  entire  country.  It  is  likewise  dominantly 
Lutheran,  the  dissenters  —  Methodists,  Bap- 
tists, and  Quakers  —  numbering  but  a  few 
thousand. 

The  earliest  records  of  the  heathen  religion 
of  Norway  are  found  in  the  literary  collections 
known  as  the  eddas.  These  are  collections 
of  legends  illustrative  of  Scandinavian  myth- 
ology. Originally,  according  to  the  eddas, 
there  was  no  heaven  above  nor  earth  beneath, 
only  a  bottomless  pit  with  a  fountain  from 
which  issued  twelve  rivers.  The  rivers,  as  they 
flowed  from  the  fountain,  froze  into  solid  ice, 
and  the  bottomless  pit  was  likewise  filled  with 
ice.  Far  to  the  south  there  was  a  world  of 
mist,  from  which  issued  a  warm  wind  which 
melted  the  ice  in  the  frozen  rivers.  Vapours 
arose  into  the  air  and  formed  clouds,  out  of 
which  was  formed  Ymir,  the  frost  giant,  and 
the  cow  Audhumbla.  The  latter  nourished  the 
giant  by  licking  the  salt  and  the  hoar  frost 
from  the  ice. 

One  day  when  the  cow  was  licking  the  salt 
stone,  the  hair  of  a  man  appeared ;  the  next  day 
she  licked  the  stone  a  head  appeared,  and  the 
third  day  an  entire  being.  This  was  a  god, 


Norse  Religions:  Old  and  New     117 

who,  in  union  with  the  daughter  of  a  giant 
race,  brought  forth  three  sons  —  Odin,  Vili, 
and  Ve.  The  sons  slew  the  giant  Ymir.  From 
his  body  they  formed  the  earth ;  from  his  bones 
the  mountains;  from  his  blood  the  seas  and 
lakes;  from  his  hair  the  trees;  from  his  skull 
the  heavens,  and  from  his  brain  the  clouds, 
hail,  and  snow.  From  the  eyebrows  of  Ymir 
they  formed  Midgard  —  the  mid-air  —  which 
was  to  become  the  abode  of  man.  Day  and 
night,  the  seasons,  and  plant-life  were  likewise 
provided.  But  the  universe  still  lacked  human 
beings.  From  an  ash  tree  they  formed  a  man, 
and  from  an  alder  a  woman.  Odin  endowed 
them  with  life  and  souls,  Vili  with  reason  and 
action,  and  Ve  with  senses  and  speech.  Mid- 
gard was  assigned  them  as  their  residence  and 
they  became  the  progenitors  of  the  Norsemen 
and  all  other  human  beings. 

A  mighty  ash  tree  that  sprung  from  the 
body  of  Ymir  supports  the  earth.  This  tree 
has  three  immense  roots  —  Asgard,  the  dwell- 
ing place  of  the  gods,  Jotunheim,  the  abode  of 
the  giants,  and  Niffleheim,  the  region  of  dark- 
ness. Asgard  contains  many  gold  and  silver 
palaces,  the  most  beautiful  of  all  being  Val- 
halla, the  abode  of  Odin.  Here  seated  upon 


118  In  Viking  Land 

his  throne  and  guarded  on  either  side  by 
wolves,  he  overlooks  both  heaven  and  earth. 
Valhalla  was  splendidly  decorated  with  bur- 
nished weapons,  the  ceiling  made  of  spears,  the 
roof  covered  with  bright  shields,  and  the  walls 
decorated  with  the  armour  and  coats  of  mail  of 
the  warriors.  The  days  were  spent  in  fighting 
and  the  nights  in  eating  and  carousing.  The 
Valkyries,  the  maidens  of  Odin,  not  only  se- 
lected the  warriors  who  were  to  be  slain,  but 
they  also  waited  upon  them  during  the  battle, 
filling  their  horns  with  mead  and  providing 
them  with  food  in  the  form  of  swine  flesh. 
When  the  maidens  rode  forth,  their  bright 
armour  shed  a  strange  flickering  light  which 
flashed  up  over  the  northern  sky  and  caused 
the  aurora  borealis. 

Odin  is  thus  represented  as  one  of  the  su- 
preme gods  of  Scandinavian  mythology.  He 
is  the  god  of  war,  who  assigns  victory  or  defeat 
to  men,  the  slain  warriors  being  taken  to  dwell 
with  him  in  Valhalla;  on  the  other  hand,  he  is 
also  god  of  wisdom  and  cunning,  knowing  all 
things.  He  invented  the  runic  characters  and 
gave  his  name  to  the  fourth  day  of  the  week 
—  Wednesday.  Belief  in  the  power  of  Odin 
and  the  pleasures  of  Valhalla  persisted  even 


Norse  Religions:  Old  and  New     119 

after  the  introduction  of  Christianity  into  the 
country.  It  will  be  recalled  that  King  Haakon 
the  Good  had  embraced  the  new  faith,  but  that 
the  opposition  of  his  people  was  so  great  that 
he  permitted  them  to  worship  the  old  gods.  On 
his  death-bed  he  was  asked  if  he  wished  a 
Christian  or  a  heathen  burial.  He  had  lived 
as  a  heathen,  he  said,  and  he  wished  to  be 
buried  as  one.  One  of  the  scalds  tells  us  they 
laid  his  body  in  the  ground  with  all  his  weapons 
and  best  array,  and  that  they  "  made  speeches 
at  his  burying  as  was  the  custom  of  heathen 
men  to  make,  and  sent  him  off  on  the  way  to 
Valhalla." 

Thor,  the  oldest  son  of  Odin,  was  likewise  a 
powerful  god,  and  with  his  enormous  hammer 
he  warred  incessantly  against  the  Wotans  or 
mist-giants.  He  was  drawn  through  the  sky 
by  two  rams ;  and  the  rattling  of  his  cart  and 
the  noise  of  his  hammer  as  he  hurled  it  at  the 
heads  of  the  fleeing  giants  caused  the  sky  to 
tremble  and  produced  the  noise  that  men  call 
thunder.  After  the  hammer  had  been  thrown 
it  returned  to  the  hand  of  Thor  of  its  own  ac- 
cord. He  also  possessed  a  belt  which  enabled 
him  to  double  his  strength  by  girding  it  tightly 
about  his  body.  . 


120  In  Viking  Land 

It  is  not  always  easy  to  indicate  the  rank  of 
the  Norse  gods.  While  Odin  is  most  often 
mentioned  as  the  supreme  authority,  there  are 
many  passages  in  the  sagas  which  suggest  that 
the  people  at  large  regarded  Thor  as  their  chief 
deity.  All  great  assemblies  in  Norway  began 
their  sessions  on  Thor's  day  —  Thursday.  In 
the  final  struggle  between  heathenism  and 
Christianity,  Thor  is  usually  represented  as 
the  champion  of  the  old  faith.  When  King 
Olaf  Haraldsson  was  making  a  strenuous  ef- 
fort to  introduce  Christianity  into  Norway,  the 
sagas  report  this  speech:  "  There  has  come 
hither  a  man  named  Olaf  to  offer  us  another 
faith  than  the  one  we  have  and  to  break  all  our 
gods  in  pieces,  and  he  claims  he  has  a  greater 
and  a  mightier  god.  It  is  a  marvel  that  the 
earth  does  not  open  under  him  when  he  dares 
to  say  such  things  and  that  our  gods  let  him 
go  any  further.  I  expect  if  we  carry  Thor  out 
of  our  temple  where  he  stands,  and  where  he 
has  always  stood  by  us,  that  as  soon  as  he 
looks  on  Olaf  and  his  men,  then  his  god,  him- 
self and  his  men  will  melt  away  and  come  to 
nought."  This  and  similar  passages  suggest 
the  supremacy  of  Thor,  but  his  cult  may  have 


Norse  Religions:  Old  and  New     121 

enjoyed  special  favour  at  this  particular  pe- 
riod. 

Like  their  confreres  in  Greece,  the  gods  of 
Norway  were  not  a  highly  celestial  set  of  crea- 
tures. They  were  not  over-choice  in  the  use  of 
language ;  they  indulged  to  excess  in  intoxicat- 
ing liquors ;  their  code  of  sexual  morality  was 
highly  indiscriminating,  and  they  spent  rather 
much  of  their  time  in  swilling  ale  and  gorging 
themselves  with  bacon.  This  illustration  from 
the  eddas :  A  respectable  Norse  ferryman  pur- 
sues his  calling;  a  stranger  appears  on  the 
opposite  bank  of  the  river  and  calls  him  to 
come  and  fetch  him;  he  at  first  refuses;  in 
pungent  Billingsgate  they  roundly  abuse  one 
another;  the  stranger  turns  out  to  be  the  god 
Thor,  but  the  ferryman  is  unabashed.  Another 
eddaic  example:  Heimdall  gives  a  feast  to  the 
gods ;  Loke,  the  tempter,  is  present  as  an  unin- 
vited guest ;  he  retails  gossip  of  the  most  scan- 
dalous sort  concerning  the  gods  and  goddesses, 
until  all  the  celestials  present  are  left  without 
characters,  when  they  turn  him  out. 

Among  the  minor  Norse  gods  may  be  men- 
tioned Frey,  who  presided  over  rain,  sunshine, 
fields,  and  pastures;  Njord,  his  father,  who 
ruled  the  seas;  Ty,  the  god  of  fortitude  and 


122  In  Viking  Land 

courage,  and  Bragi,  the  god  of  poetry  and 
song.  Hero  worship  seems  also  to  have  been 
practised  in  Norway.  Mention  is  made  of  of- 
ferings being  taken  to  the  grave-mound  of 
Olaf,  and  after  the  introduction  of  Christianity 
the  worship  of  grave-mounds  is  specifically 
forbidden.  It  is  believed  that  not  only  men 
but  also  animals  were  worshipped,  and  there 
are  even  traces  of  phallic  worship  in  Norway 
as  late  as  the  time  of  Olaf  the  Saint. 

The  Norsemen  erected  temples  in  which  to 
keep  the  images  and  worship  the  gods.  These 
for  the  most  part  were  small  buildings  con- 
structed of  timber.  It  is  related  of  a  Norse 
chief  who  moved  to  Iceland  that  he  had  the 
temple  taken  down  to  take  with  him  to  his  new 
home.  A  few  of  the  temples  were  imposing 
structures  and  were  furnished  with  costly  orna- 
ments. It  is  told  of  Olaf  Trygvesson  that  when 
he  gave  orders  to  burn  a  temple  at  Hladir  that 
"  he  made  them  take  all  the  treasures  and  or- 
naments out  of  the  temple  and  off  the  images 
of  the  gods." 

A  pedestal  in  the  nature  of  an  altar  stood 
in  the  inner  part  of  the  temple  and  attached 
to  this  was  a  ring  on  which  all  oaths  had  to 


Norse  Religions:  Old  and  New     123 

be  taken.  The  sacrificial  bowl  stood  on  the 
pedestal.  In  it  were  placed  the  twigs  with 
which  the  blood  of  the  sacrifice  was  sprinkled 
upon  those  present  at  the  ceremony.  The 
images  of  the  gods  were  arranged  round  about 
the  altar.  All  Norsemen  residing  in  a  given 
district  had  to  pay  toll  to  the  local  temple.  A 
special  law  of  the  year  930  throws  some  light 
on  the  matter  of  pagan  ecclesiastical  adminis- 
tration: "  The  land  was  divided  into  quarters 
and  there  were  to  be  three  places  of  worship 
in  each  quarter.  Men  who  were  noted  for  in- 
telligence were  selected  to  have  charge  of  the 
temples;  these  also  had  to  appoint  the  law- 
courts  at  the  assemblies  and  to  superintend 
the  proceedings  there." 

Sacrifice  of  living  things  seems  to  have  been 
the  chief  rite  of  the  ancient  religion.  Some- 
times the  sacrifices  were  offered  by  the  com- 
munity, sometimes  by  individuals.  Men  of 
wealth  often  acquired  a  reputation  for  piety 
by  providing  a  munificent  sacrifice  at  their 
own  expense.  Thus  the  saga  says  of  Earl 
Sigurd :  ' '  He  made  a  great  sacrificial  feast 
at  Hladir,  and  stood  all  the  expense  of  it  him- 
self." The  animals  chiefly  used  in  the  sacri- 
fice were  oxen,  horses,  sheep,  and  swine;  and 


124  In  Viking  Land 

on  extraordinary  occasions,  human  beings. 
While  there  was  no  distinct  class  of  priests, 
a  form  of  priestcraft  existed,  which  was  hered- 
itarily transmitted,  although  the  chief  part  of 
the  public  worship  was  in  the  hands  of  the 
leading  men  of  the  community. 

As  early  as  the  ninth  century  zealous  mis- 
sionaries from  central  Europe  attempted  to 
supplant  Thor  and  his  hammer  by  Christ  and 
the  cross,  and  by  the  tenth  century  paganism 
had  spent  its  force  in  Norway.  Christianity, 
as  first  introduced,  was  a  compromise  with  ex- 
isting pagan  notions,  and  it  required  a  good 
many  years  before  the  new  faith  exercised 
much  influence  over  the  lives  of  the  people. 
But  when  generally  adopted  and  practised,  it 
accelerated  tremendously  the  development  of 
Norse  civilization;  for  the  old  faith,  which 
bestowed  the  chief  favour  of  the  gods  upon 
men  who  followed  the  trade  of  arms,  was  hos- 
tile to  national  progress.  Norway  took  great 
strides  during  the  centuries  which  followed,  in 
spite  of  the  discontent  among  the  people  caused 
by  the  growing  power  and  oppression  of  the 
nobility  and  the  clergy. 

The  reform  movement  of  Martin  Luther 
spread  rapidly  from  Germany  to  the  Scandi- 


Norse  Eeligions:  Old  and  New     125 

navian  countries.  Denmark,  with  whom  Nor- 
way was  at  the  time  united,  had  been  prepared 
for  the  struggle  by  Christian  II  (1513-1524), 
who  had  abolished  compulsory  celibacy,  pro- 
hibited the  sale  of  serfs,  and  introduced  other 
reforms  at  the  expense  of  the  clergy  and  the 
nobility.  It  was,  however,  during  the  reigns 
of  Frederick  I  (1524-1533)  and  Christian  III 
(1533-1563)  that  Protestantism  became  an  ac- 
complished fact  in  Norway.  The  cause  of  re- 
ligion suffered  unmistakably  during  the  years 
that  followed  the  abolition  of  the  Roman  Cath- 
olic rite  and  the  suppression  of  the  monas- 
teries; for  Protestant  ministers  with  compe- 
tency and  piety  were  not  at  once  forthcoming 
in  sufficient  numbers  to  meet  the  needs  of  the 
Norwegians.  Eventually  these  faults  were 
remedied  and  Norway  has  during  the  past  four 
centuries  become  the  most  Protestant  country 
in  the  world. 

The  Evangelical  Lutheran  church  became  the 
state  religion  of  Norway  in  1537.  It  is  based 
upon  the  apostolic,  the  Niocene-Constantino- 
ple,  and  the  Athanasian  creeds,  together  with 
the  Augsburg  confession  and  Luther's  shorter 
catechism.  The  king  and  his  council,  the  cler- 
ical office  bearers,  professors  of  theology  in 


126  In  Viking  Land 

the  university,  and  school  teachers  and  super- 
intendents must  be  members  of  the  established 
church.  The  holy  days  of  the  Lutheran  church 
are  protected  by  law,  and  all  government  and 
municipal  schools  are  required  to  give  religious 
instruction.  Jesuits  are  excluded  from  the 
kingdom,  but  all  other  religious  sects  are  given 
freedom  of  worship  "  so  long  as  they  do  not 
transgress  the  limits  of  law  and  decency." 
Before  1841  Jews  were  excluded  from  the  coun- 
try, and  Hebrew  merchants  residing  in  Ger- 
many and  England  had  to  transact  their  Nor- 
wegian business  by  proxy.  In  the  constitu- 
tional assembly  at  Eidsvold  in  1814  an  effort 
was  made  to  repeal  this  exclusion,  but  the 
Norse  lawmakers  took  the  view-point  of  one 
of  the  speakers  that  "  Norway  has  enough 
Jews  of  her  own  persuasion." 

Dissent  has  not  appreciably  disturbed  the 
even  tenor  of  the  Lutheran  church  in  Norway. 
The  most  troublesome  sect  appeared  at  the 
beginning  of  the  last  century.  It  was  headed 
by  Hans  Nielsen  Hauge  (1771-1824).  He  trav- 
elled about  the  country  and  conducted  services 
something  after  the  pattern  of  the  revival 
meetings  of  the  Methodists.  The  meetings  of 
the  Haugianere  were  held  at  the  homes  of  the 


Norse  Religions:  Old  and  New     127 

people,  and  Tidemand  has  transferred  to  can- 
vas, in  the  national  gallery  at  Christiania,  a 
picture  of  one  of  these  simple  cottage  services. 
The  Norwegian  government,  however,  was 
stirred  up  against  them  by  the  narrow-minded 
clergy,  and  notably  by  the  intolerant  bishop 
of  Bergen ;  and  Hauge  was  thrown  into  prison, 
where  he  lingered  for  nine  years  awaiting  trial. 
He  was  accused  of  trying  to  set  aside  the  re- 
ligion of  the  state,  and  was  at  last  sentenced 
to  two  years  of  hard  labour.  His  property 
was  also  confiscated  and  the  people  were  for- 
bidden to  read  his  books.  Hauge  was  merely 
a  religious  zealot;  he  preached  no  new  doc- 
trine ;  and,  but  for  the  persecution  of  the  gov- 
ernment, the  sect  would  probably  have  at- 
tracted very  little  notice.  In  1845  the  law  pun- 
ishing dissenters  was  greatly  modified,  and  the 
established  church  has  gained  thereby. 

Norway  is  divided  ecclesiastically  into  six 
bishoprics,  eighty-four  archdeaconries,  and 
four  hundred  and  eighty-eight  clerical  dis- 
tricts. The  king,  in  cooperation  with  the  na- 
tional parliament,  is  the  highest  authority  in 
the  affairs  of  the  established  church.  He  ap- 
points the  bishops  and  the  clergy;  ordains  all 
the  public  functions  of  the  established  church, 


128  In  Viking  Land 

and,  through  the  department  of  education,  sees 
that  the  public  teachers  of  religion  conform  to 
the  prescribed  rules. 

The  confirmation  of  children  at  the  age  of 
fourteen  is  the  source  of  religious  unity  in 
Norway.  Confirmation  not  only  admits  to  the 
rites  and  privileges  of  religious  life,  but  it  is 
necessary  for  admission  to  the  civil  service. 
One  who  has  not  been  confirmed  would  not  only 
be  denied  employment  in  the  public  service, 
but  he  would  find  it  difficult  to  obtain  private 
employment.  He  could  not  contract  marriage 
or  assume  the  responsibilities  of  adulthood. 
Confirmation  signifies  the  completion  of  the 
elementary  school  course  and  the  possession 
of  a  definite  amount  of  intellectual  as  well  as 
of  religious  and  moral  training.  On  steamers 
one  frequently  finds  two  classes  of  prices,  one 
for  confirmed  persons  and  one  for  the  uncon- 
firmed, meaning,  of  course,  adults  and  children. 
In  the  newspapers  one  may  read  this  notice: 
"  Wanted,  a  confirmed  cook."  The  advertise- 
ment does  not  refer  to  the  occult  culinary  qual- 
ifications of  the  kitchen  queen,  but  to  her  age; 
it  is  assumed  that  if  the  individual  has  been 
confirmed  she  has  reached  a  certain  age. 

The  clergy  of  Norway  are  entitled  to  the  use 


Norse  Religions:  Old  and  New     129 

of  parsonages  and  a  certain  fixed  salary  which 
is  paid  largely  from  local  tax  funds.  Pastors 
in  town  churches  are  paid  from  $1000  to  $1600 
a  year,  and  country  pastors  from  $600  to  $1000 
a  year.  Ecclesiastical  fees,  such  as  baptism, 
confirmation,  marriage  and  burial,  have  been 
practically  abolished  in  Norway,  so  that  the 
incomes,  plus  allowance  for  house-rent,  are 
pretty  definitely  established.  The  churches 
and  church-yards,  with  a  few  exceptions,  are 
the  property  of  the  congregations;  but  their 
superintendence  falls  to  the  king,  and  no 
church  can  be  erected  or  altered  without  his 
consent.  There  is  a  diocesan  board  which  has 
certain  general  duties,  but  the  immediate  di- 
rection of  local  churches  falls  to  the  pastor 
and  two  members  of  the  parish  who  are  ap- 
pointed by  the  municipal  council. 

Aside  from  the  sermon,  which  is  an  impor- 
tant feature  of  the  Sunday  worship,  and  is 
generally  long,  the  service  consists  of  the 
prayer  of  the  clergyman,  and  the  response  by 
the  choir  and  the  people.  The  psalms  are  pre- 
sented by  the  village  clerk,  who  is  usually  a 
local  schoolmaster.  The  hymns  are  collected 
and  arranged  for  seasons  and  special  occasions 
in  the  little  Bede  Psalm  Book,  which  every 


130  In  Viking  Land 

worshipper  brings  to  the  service.  The  assem- 
bling of  the  congregation  in  the  church-yard 
for  a  social  hour  before  and  after  the  religious 
service  is  an  interesting  sight  to  the  traveller, 
and  especially  picturesque  is  the  arrival  of  the 
peasants  of  the  western  fjords  in  their  little 
boats,  the  women  assisting  the  men  in  rowing. 
Seen  from  a  distance  in  their  many-coloured 
national  costumes,  they  look  for  all  the  world 
like  beds  of  variegated  poppies  floating  on  the 
waters  of  the  fjords.  In  the  sparsely  settled 
counties,  the  people  do  not  attend  religious 
services  oftener  than  fortnightly,  and  there 
are  sometimes  long  arrears  of  christenings, 
marriages  and  funerals.  As  in  other  Lutheran 
countries,  the  people  attend  religious  services 
in  the  morning,  and  the  balance  of  the  day  they 
spend  as  any  other  holiday,  in  dancing  and 
other  forms  of  amusements.  The  Norwegians 
are  a  people  of  religious  habits;  they  will 
travel  long  distances  and  face  all  sorts  of 
weather  to  be  present  at  divine  service;  they 
have  reverence  for  their  churches  and  respect 
for  their  pastors,  and  up  to  the  time  of  con- 
firmation their  children  are  given  most  careful 
religious  training. 


CHAPTER   IX 

EDUCATION   IN    NORWAY 

Common  school  education  universal  in  Norway  —  State  con- 
trol —  Domestic  education  —  Course  of  study  and  qualifi- 
cation of  teachers  —  Secondary  education  —  The  national 
university  at  Christiania  —  Technical  and  special  education 

—  Art     and     industrial     education  —  Learned      societies  — 
Public  libraries  —  Newspapers   and  reviews  —  Press  censor- 
ship during  the  union  with  Denmark  —  Effect  of  the  Eids- 
vold  constitution  —  Some  of  the  earliest  journals  —  News- 
papers and  the  Landsmaal  —  Efforts  to  make  Norse  dialects 
the  official  language  of  the  country  —  Literary  defects  of  the 
Landsmaal  —  The  Dano-Norwegian  and  the  New-Norwegian 

—  Unconscious  approximation  of  the  two  languages. 

NORWAY  shares  with  Denmark,  Sweden,  and 
Finland  priority  in  the  matter  of  the  literacy 
of  her  people.  Universal  education  of  a  high 
degree  of  efficiency  was  one  of  the  immediate 
results  of  the  Protestant  reformation.  The 
Lutheran  church  in  these  countries  made  the 
completion  of  an  elementary  school  course 
requisite  for  confirmation,  and  confirmation  es- 
sential for  marriage  and  participation  in  the 
social,  political,  and  religious  life.  Thus  the 
church  has  cooperated  with  the  state  in  pre- 
131 


132  In  Viking  Land 

venting  adult  illiteracy.  Norway  has  had  a 
good  system  of  public  schools  for  more  than 
two  centuries,  and  for  seventy-five  years  educa- 
tion has  been  compulsory. 

Education  is  under  the  control  of  the  minis- 
try of  public  instruction  and  includes  the  ele- 
mentary and  secondary  schools,  the  university, 
and  the  technical  and  special  schools.  The  ele- 
mentary school  course  covers  seven  years  of 
the  child's  life  —  from  the  ages  of  seven  to 
fourteen  in  towns  and  from  eight  to  fifteen  in 
the  rural  districts.  The  management  of  the 
schools  falls  to  a  local  school  board  composed 
of  one  clergyman,  one  teacher,  the  president 
of  the  local  council,  and  as  many  more  members 
chosen  from  the  municipal  council  as  the  coun- 
cil itself  shall  determine.  The  school  board 
elects  the  teachers,  draws  up  the  budget,  pro- 
vides for  school  supervision,  and  works  out 
details  in  the  matter  of  courses  of  study. 

School  districts  with  an  enrolment  of 
twenty  or  more  children  are  required  to  pro- 
vide buildings  for  school  purposes,  while  in 
districts  of  less  than  twenty  children  the  school 
may  be  held  in  rotation  in  the  houses  of  the 
patrons,  but  the  ambulatory  schools  of  Norway 
are  rapidly  disappearing.  The  parents  take 


Education  in  Norway  133 

an  active  part  in  the  supervision  of  the  home 
studies  of  the  children.  This  is  necessitated 
by  the  fact  that  children  in  the  rural  districts 
do  not  always  attend  school  full  time.  At 
Loen,  for  example,  I  was  told  by  a  member 
of  the  local  school  board  that  the  children  at- 
tended school  on  alternate  days,  and  in  other 
places  alternate  weeks.  This  half-time  policy 
is  dictated  by  considerations  of  economy.  The 
required  studies  in  the  elementary  schools  are 
religion,  the  mother  tongue,  penmanship,  arith- 
metic, elementary  geometry,  nature  study,  geog- 
raphy, and  singing.  Manual  training,  gymnas- 
tics, and  drawing  are  also  compulsory  in  town 
schools  but  optional  in  the  ungraded  schools 
of  the  country. 

In  the  rural  districts  the  number  of  pupils 
under  one  teacher  at  one  time  must  not  exceed 
thirty-five  and  in  town  schools  forty.  Co-edu- 
cation is  the  rule  in  the  sparsely  settled  coun- 
try districts,  but  in  the  towns  the  sexes  are 
taught  separately.  Teachers  in  the  elementary 
schools  must  be  at  least  twenty  years  old,  mem- 
bers of  the  Lutheran  church,  and  possess  a 
teacher's  certificate.  Certificates  are  of  two 
kinds:  provisional  and  permanent.  The  for- 
mer indicate  the  possession  of  qualifications 


134  In  Viking  Land 

necessary  for  admission  to  a  state  normal 
school  and  entitle  the  holders  to  teach  in  the 
low  grades  of  the  rural  schools  only,  and  the 
latter  indicate  graduation  from  a  state  normal 
school  and  entitle  the  holders  to  permanent  ap- 
pointment in  any  elementary  school.  There 
are  eleven  normal  schools  in  Norway  for  the 
training  of  teachers.  They  are  essentially 
high  schools  with  abbreviated  courses  in  meth- 
ods of  teaching,  school  management,  and  peda- 
gogical subjects. 

There  are  also  optional  continuation  schools 
for  children  who  have  completed  the  compul- 
sory elementary  course.  These  schools  are  or- 
dinarily taught  by  the  elementary  teachers,  but 
the  course  of  instruction  is  more  advanced. 
There  are  also  county  schools  which  continue 
the  work  of  the  elementary  and  the  continua- 
tion schools.  In  these  students  may  pursue 
courses  in  modern  languages,  technical  draw- 
ing, agriculture,  and  horticulture.  People's 
high  schools,  not  unlike  the  country  academies 
in  America  during  the  last  century,  are  found 
in  many  rural  districts.  These  aim  to  give  a 
more  or  less  general  cultural  training  to  young 
people  who  have  passed  the  ordinary  school 
age. 


Education  in  Norway  135 

Secondary  education  in  Norway,  as  in  the 
United  States,  is  correlated  with  the  elementary 
schools.  Pupils  from  the  lower  schools  pass 
directly  to  the  middle  schools,  where,  besides 
the  advanced  phases  of  the  common  school 
branches,  they  receive  instruction  in  the  mod- 
ern languages.  The  middle  schools  take  chil- 
dren between  the  ages  of  twelve  and  fifteen 
years,  and  they  aim  to  give  a  thorough  general 
education,  practically  what  is  given  in  most 
American  high  schools,  although  in  a  much 
shorter  time.  Above  the  middle  schools  are 
the  classical  or  literary  high  schools  which  fit 
for  the  university  and  other  higher  educational 
institutions.  There  are  three  elective  courses 
in  the  classical  schools  —  the  ancient  languages, 
the  modern  languages,  and  the  sciences.  Latin 
and  Greek  are  no  longer  compulsory  studies 
for  all  students.  The  secondary  schools  of 
Norway,  as  in  the  United  States,  are  co-edu- 
cational, since  women  are  now  admitted  to  the 
university.  In  addition  to  the  public  second- 
ary schools,  there  are  many  institutions  of  a 
private  nature  which  are  more  or  less  under 
the  control  of  the  municipal  and  national  edu- 
cational authorities. 

The   university   of   Christiania   crowns   the 


136  In  Viking  Land 

system  of  public  education  in  Norway.  It  was 
founded  in  1811  and  has  about  two  thousand 
students  and  eighty  professors  and  instructors. 
It  is  co-educational  and  many  Norwegian 
women  avail  themselves  of  university  train- 
ing. Now  that  universal  suffrage  prevails,  it 
is  probable  that,  as  in  Finland,  women  will 
enter  parliament  and  become  active  in  the  po- 
litical life  of  the  nation.  The  university  is 
organized  into  five  faculties  —  theology,  law, 
medicine,  philosophy,  and  science.  Each  fac- 
ulty selects  from  its  number  a  dean  who  is  the 
presiding  officer  for  two  years.  The  general 
management  of  the  university  is  under  the 
direction  of  the  ministry  of  public  instruction, 
although  the  professors  are  appointed  by  the 
king.  Tuition  is  free  and  the  university 
courses  are  open  to  both  sexes.  Connected 
with  the  university  are  the  national  library, 
the  botanical  gardens,  the  historical  museums, 
the  astronomical  and  magnetic  observatory, 
the  meteorological  institute,  and  the  marine 
biological  station  (at  Drb'bak).  The  hospitals 
of  Christiania  are  also  affiliated  with  the  uni- 
versity. The  university  has  been  the  most  po- 
tent factor  in  the  development  of  the  national 
consciousness  and  most  of  the  contemporary 


Education  in  Norway  137 

leaders  in  politics,  letters,  the  arts,  and  science 
claim  the  university  of  Christiania  as  their 
alma  mater. 

Norway  has  also  a  reasonably  efficient  sys- 
tem of  technical  education.  The  higher  tech- 
nical schools  are  located  at  Trondhjem,  Chris- 
tiania, and  Bergen.  Admission  to  these  insti- 
tutions is  from  the  middle  schools.  The  muni- 
cipalities in  which  they  are  located  provide 
the  plants  and  one-third  of  the  running  ex- 
penses and  the  state  pays  the  remaining  two- 
thirds.  They  are  controlled  by  the  ministry  of 
public  instruction.  The  school  at  Trondhjem 
provides  four-year  courses  in  engineering,  ma- 
chinery, chemistry,  and  architecture.  The 
school  at  Christiania  provides  all  but  engineer- 
ing, and  the  Bergen  school  offers  courses  in 
machinery  and  chemistry  only.  There  is  also 
a  school  for  wood  and  metal  industries  at  Ber- 
gen; a  technical  school  for  mechanics  at  Hor- 
ten,  and  a  school  for  the  mechanic  arts  at 
Porsgrund. 

There  are  many  technical  night  schools  or- 
ganized and  maintained  by  the  municipalities. 
They  generally  have  three^year  courses  and 
aim  to  give  the  information  and  skill  necessary 
for  the  handicrafts.  There  are  also  so-called 


138  In  Viking  Land 

workingmen's  colleges  in  Norway  where  tech- 
nical instruction  is  given  in  the  form  of  lec- 
tures by  scientific  men,  physicians,  school-mas- 
ters, and  military  men.  The  lectures  are  given 
in  the  evening  and  the  expenses  are  shared  by 
the  state,  the  municipalities,  and  the  labour 
organizations.  The  state  has  a  well-developed 
agricultural  college  at  Aas  near  Christiania, 
and  there  are  government  forestry,  naval,  and 
military  schools. 

The  royal  art  and  industrial  school  at  Chris- 
tiania, founded  in  1818,  aims  to  train  artists, 
artistic  craftsmen,  and  teachers  of  art.  Its 
courses  include  free-hand  and  architectural 
drawing,  ornament,  modelling,  construction, 
and  decorative  painting.  A  music  and  organ 
school  is  supported  by  the  government  at 
Christiania;  and  there  are,  besides,  schools  of 
industrial  art  for  women  where  fine  needle- 
work, weaving,  and  dressmaking  are  taught. 
Other  indirect  educational  agencies  are  the  lit- 
erary and  philosophical  society  at  Christiania, 
which  has  charge  of  the  Fridtjof  Nansen  fund 
for  the  advancement  of  science;  the  royal  lit- 
erary and  philosophical  society  at  Trondhjem, 
founded  as  early  as  1760 ;  the  national  society 
for  the  preservation  of  ancient  Norwegian 


Education  in  Norway  139 

monuments,  and  the  industrial  art  museums  at 
Christiania,  Bergen,  and  Trondhjem. 

In  the  matter  of  public  libraries  Norway  is 
less  well  provided  than  might  be  expected  from 
the  pronounced  reading  habits  and  the  uni- 
versal literacy  of  her  people.  The  so-called 
workingmen's  colleges  have  done  pioneer  work 
in  this  field,  but  much  more  remains  to  be  done, 
and  the  patriots  responsible  for  the  policies  of 
the  new  kingdom  should  look  to  public  libra- 
ries as  a  certain  means  of  quickening  the  intel- 
lectual life  of  the  nation.  There  are  in  all 
something  like  six  hundred  and  fifty  libraries 
in  the  country,  containing  from  one  hundred 
to  ten  thousand  volumes.  The  best  public  li- 
braries are  at  Bergen  and  Christiania.  The 
national  library,  in  connection  with  the  univer- 
sity, is  also  at  Christiania. 

Norway  fares  excellently  well  in  the  matter 
of  newspapers.  When  the  Eidsvold  constitu- 
tion in  1814  granted  complete  freedom  to  the 
press,  there  was  immediate  and  healthy  devel- 
opment in  the  field  of  newspaperdom ;  and 
considering  the  limited  wealth  and  the  sparse 
population  of  the  country,  Norway  is  singu- 
larly favoured  both  in  the  quality  and  the  quan- 
tity of  her  journals.  Towns  of  eight  or  ten 


140  In  Viking  Land 

thousand  inhabitants  often  have  as  many  as 
five  newspapers;  and  Hammerfest,  the  most 
northern  town  in  the  world,  has  two  newspa- 
pers. Many  of  the  great  dailies  of  Christiania 
compare  very  favourably  with  the  best  that  is 
produced  at  the  other  capitals  of  Europe.  Men 
of  the  stamp  of  Bjornson,  Ibsen,  and  Nansen 
have  been  identified  with  the  newspapers  of 
the  capital.  Women,  too,  have  played  a  leading 
role  in  Norse  journalism,  and  Anna  Boe  and 
her  Urd  (Forward)  have  finally  conquered  in 
the  struggle  for  women's  suffrage. 

While  much  later  than  most  other  European 
countries  in  the  development  of  a  periodical 
literature,  during  the  past  century  Norway  has 
made  extraordinary  progress.  As  early  as 
1762  Bishop  Nannestad  began  the  publication 
of  his  "  Short  Weekly  Treatises  on  Various 
Useful  and  Edifying  Matters, ' '  and  three  years 
later  the  first  newspaper  proper  appeared  in 
Christiania.  Bergen  had  its  first  weekly  news- 
paper in  1765  and  Trondhjem  in  1767.  For  a 
century  the  early  newspapers  of  Norway  had 
a  monopoly  from  the  government  of  all  the 
advertisements  of  the  dioceses  in  which  they 
were  published. 

Press  censorship  down  to  the  time  of  the 


Education  in  Norway  141 

union  with  Sweden  was  singularly  rigid,  and 
the  Danish  government  made  it  almost  impos- 
sible for  the  Norwegian  newspapers  to  discuss 
political  matters.  It  was  forbidden  to  publish 
anything  that  referred  to  "  the  state,  the  gov- 
ernment, and  public  institutions."  The  bish- 
ops acted  as  censors  of  all  printed  matter. 
Modification  of  the  press  censorship  laws  at 
the  beginning  of  the  last  century  enabled 
Wulfsberg,  de  Falsen,  and  Platou  to  establish 
the  significant  organ  of  the  "  Society  for  the 
Welfare  of  Norway, ' '  which  not  only  concerned 
itself  with  Norwegian  affairs  but  discussed  so- 
cial and  political  matters  of  current  interest. 

It  was  not  until  the  separation  from  Den- 
mark that  press  restrictions  were  removed. 
The  Eidsvold  constitution  of  1814  provided 
that  "  no  person  can  be  punished  for  any  wri- 
ting, whatever  its  contents  may  be,  which  he 
has  caused  to  be  printed  or  published,  unless 
he,  wilfully  and  publicly,  has  either  himself 
shown  or  incited  others  to  disobedience  to  the 
laws,  contempt  to  religion  or  morality  or  con- 
stitutional authorities,  or  resistance  to  their 
orders,  or  has  advanced  false  or  defamatory 
accusations  against  some  one.  Every  one  shall 
be  at  liberty  to  speak  his  mind  frankly  on  the 


142  In  Viking  Land 

administration  of  the  state  and  on  any  other 
subject  whatsoever." 

The  Norwegian  National  Journal,  founded 
in  1815,  was  the  first  newspaper  to  .stand  for 
free  criticism.  "  In  this  paper,"  remarks 
Karl  Fischer,  "  the  awakening  consciousness 
of  the  peasant  found  expression,  partly  in  im- 
petuous, often  narrow-minded  attacks  on  gov- 
ernment servants,  partly  in  loud  praise  of  the 
peasant  and  his  importance  to  the  community." 
The  Morning  Journal,  the  first  Norwegian 
daily,  appeared  in  1818,  and  it  is  still  in  ex- 
istence. For  a  dozen  years  it  had  a  distinctly 
literary  flavour,  but  since  1831  it  has  been  a 
force  in  the  political  life  of  the  nation.  The 
elections  of  1832  brought  a  large  number  of 
peasants  into  the  national  parliament  and  there 
was  an  awakened  interest  in  political  issues 
among  all  classes  of  the  people.  Henrik 
Wergeland  and  other  literary  men  of  distinc- 
tion rendered  important  journalistic  aid  to  the 
new  democratic  movement. 

The  bureaucratic  or  intelligence  party,  as  it 
was  called,  apprehending  disaster  from  the 
growing  political  importance  of  the  peasants, 
founded  the  Constitution  in  1836.  It  was  ed- 
ited by  men  of  marked  ability  like  the  lawyer 


Education  in  Norway  143 

and  statesman  Schweigaard  and  the  poets 
Munch  and  Welhaven.  A  Norse  historian  says 
of  it:  "  By  its  competent  treatment  of  the 
questions  of  the  hour,  and  its  multifarious 
contents,  it  marked  a  great  advance  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  Norwegian  press.  In  politics  it 
was  conservative,  and  in  the  face  of  the  fre- 
quently immature  and  narrow-minded  patriot- 
ism of  opposition  papers,  maintained  the  im- 
portance of  a  free  intellectual  association  with 
the  old  sister-country,  Denmark." 

The  Evening  Journal,  with  which  Bjorn- 
stjerne  Bjornson,  the  eminent  writer,  was  many 
years  connected,  was  organized  in  1855. 
"  What  especially  distinguished  this  paper," 
remarks  Mr.  Fischer,  "  was  its  news  of  the 
day,  local  information,  rapidity  of  communica- 
tion of  intelligence  from  at  home  and  abroad, 
and  also  the  talented  treatment  of  artistic  and 
literary  questions.  During  the  first  few  years, 
it  retained  something  of  the  freshness  it  had 
inherited  from  its  satirical  predecessor,  while 
at  the  same  time  it  enjoyed  esteem  for  its  ur- 
banity and  thoroughness  in  discussion.  Polit- 
ically, it  was  at  first  an  advocate  of  the  pro- 
gramme of  the  reform  party;  but  by  degrees 
its  want  of  a  firm  political  attitude  became 


144  In  Viking  Land 

more  apparent,  as  the  struggle  between  the 
governing  powers  became  keener,  until  there 
became  less  room  for  its  mediatory  interposi- 
tion. " 

A  half-dozen  democratic  journals  originated 
during  the  sixties,  the  most  significant  being 
the  Daily  Journal  (Dagbladet),  which  "  suc- 
ceeded in  overcoming  the  manifold  difficulties 
that  a  liberal  paper  had  to  fight  in  those  days." 
Among  its  distinguished  contributors  were 
Arne  Garborg  and  the  late  Jonas  Lie.  There 
was  less  activity  in  Norse  journalism  during 
the  seventies  and  eighties,  but  during  the  nine- 
ties the  movement  for  cheap  newspapers 
reached  Norway.  The  17th  of  May,  established 
in  1894  and  at  first  edited  by  Arne  Garborg, 
is  issued  in  Landsmaal,  ' '  an  artificial  language 
which  nobody  speaks. ' ' 

The  Landsmaal,  according  to  Falk,  is  based 
on  the  most  antique  western  dialects,  with  oc- 
casional reference  to  the  forms  of  the  old  Nor- 
wegian. "  Thus  it  is  an  idealized  popular  lan- 
guage, having  a  more  antique  character  than 
the  dialects  themselves.  In  sound,  vocabulary, 
and  inflections,  it  is  much  nearer  to  the  old 
language  than  is  the  Danish."  The  "  Lands- 
maal movement,"  which  was  started  by  the 


Education  in  Norway  145 

poet  Aasen  and  which  has  been  favoured  by 
the  political  factional  strife  in  Norway,  is  the 
slogan  of  The  17th  of  May. 

The  language  struggle,  which  the  "  Lands- 
maal  movement  '"  has  occasioned,  is  an  im- 
portant factor  in  the  general  problem  of  edu- 
cation in  Norway.  The  war  of  extermination 
against  the  common  written  language  of  the 
country  —  the  so-called  Dano-Norwegian  —  is 
on  in  earnest.  Authors  of  more  than  local  tal- 
ent are  publishing  books  in  the  native  dialect 
and  by  legal  enactment  it  has  been  placed  on 
a  footing  with  the  prevailing  literary  language, 
thus  giving  Norway  two  official  languages.  In 
the  rural  districts,  where  the  local  dialect  is 
more  generally  spoken,  the  Landsmaal  may  be 
taught  in  the  schools,  if  desired  by  the  patrons. 

The  national  movement  in  Norway  has  fa- 
voured a  return  to  the  old  Norse,  but  the  new- 
made  language,  which  is  based  upon  the  dia- 
lects of  the  western  coast,  has  not  made  much 
headway  in  the  southeastern  part  of  the  coun- 
try, the  economic  centre  of  gravity  of  Norway. 
Scholars  have  pointed  out  the  literary  defects 
of  the  Landsmaal.  Attention  has  been  called 
to  the  fact  that  while  the  aggregate  vocabulary 
of  the  dialects  is  large,  it  is  more  an  abundance 


146  In  Viking  Land 

than  a  real  richness  and  is  more  conducive  to 
differentiation  than  to  unity,  the  same  thing 
having  different  names  in  different  dialects. 
Falk  notes  that  it  lacks  words  for  a  number  of 
conceptions  belonging  to  modern  civilization. 
11  It  cannot,"  he  says,  "  out  of  its  own  inher- 
ited treasures,  give  us  everything  pertaining 
to  modern  life.  The  consequence  is  that  when- 
ever the  language  has  been  employed  for  prac- 
tical use,  the  writer  or  speaker  has  been  com- 
pelled either  to  form  new  words  (generally  by 
composition),  or  to  adopt  the  words  and 
phrases  of  the  Dano-Norwegian.  But  as  a 
matter  of  course,  such  wholesale  adoption  of 
linguistic  material  cannot  but  exert  a  destruc- 
tive and  disintegrating  effect. ' ' 

The  Landsmaal,  while  adapted  to  verse  and 
folk-stories,  does  not  lend  itself  readily  to  sci- 
entific, religious,  and  philosophic  writings. 
Literary  men  of  the  first  rank  have  in  conse- 
quence been  slightly  influenced  by  the  new 
movement.  They  continue  to  write  in  the 
Dano-Norwegian.  Many  Norwegianisms  have, 
however,  crept  into  the  literary  language  since 
the  separation  from  Denmark.  At  first  re- 
garded as  provincialisms,  with  the  gradual 
awakening  of  the  national  consciousness,  local 


Education  in  Norway  147 

expressions  have  gained  the  sanction  of  lit- 
erary men  like  Wergeland,  Asbjb'rnsen,  Moe, 
and  Knudsen.  If  this  Norwegianizing  of  the 
literary  language  of  Denmark  continues  for  a 
hundred  or  two  years  longer,  it  is  clearly 
apparent  that  there  will  be  a  New-Norwegian 
language  without  the  adoption  of  the  artificial 
Landsmaal. 

Hjalmar  Falk,1  already  quoted,  says:  "If 
we  compare  the  new  Norwegian  language  with 
the  mother-tongue,  we  shall  be  able  to  make 
the  observation,  that  although  it  has  been 
under  its  influence  the  whole  time,  it  has  in 
many  cases  retained  old  peculiarities  which  the 
mother-tongue  has  afterwards  given  up.  As 
far  as  our  pronunciation  is  concerned,  it  agrees 
in  all  essential  respects  with  the  popular 
tongue  in  contra-distinction  to  the  Danish. 
The  hard  consonants  contribute  greatly 
towards  giving  our  speech  a  harder  sound 
than  the  Danish  with  its  modified  sounds.  Our 
accent  is  more  like  the  Swedish  than  the  Da- 
nish; one  characteristic  feature  is  the  rising 
accent  which  often  makes  a  foreigner  believe 
our  statements  to  be  queries.  Our  speech  is 

*See:  Talk's  Dansk-norskens  syntax  i  historisk  fremstilling. 
Christiania,  1000.  See  also  his  article  on  "  Language "  in 
"Norway:  Official  Publication  for  the  Paris  Exposition,  1900." 


148  In  Viking  Land 

less  melodious  than  the  Swedish;  the  song 
element  does  not  play  so  prominent  a  part. 
The  inflection  is  being  continually  Norwegian- 
ized,  especially  the  formation  of  the  plural ; 
we  have  thousands  of  separate  Norwegian 
words  and  phrases.  One  characteristic  feature 
of  our  language  is  the  numerous  double  forms, 
of  which  one,  being  Danish  in  its  sound,  espe- 
cially belongs  to  the  literary  style  and  the  more 
select  language,  and  regularly  has  a  more  ab- 
stract signification,  while  the  other,  being  Nor- 
wegian in  its  form,  belongs  to  the  every-day 
speech.  The  word-formation  is  most  closely 
related  to  Danish,  although  several  derivatives 
have  been  adopted  from  the  popular  language. 
The  Dano-Norwegian  syntax  shows  many 
points  of  similarity  with  the  genuine  Norwe- 
gian one,  and  the  same  is  the  case  with  the 
order  of  the  words  in  the  sentence.  The  Nor- 
wegian form  of  the  language  as  written  very 
often  lacks  the  grace  and  trimness  of  the  Da- 
nish, the  easy  jest,  the  fine  irony,  the  peri- 
phrastic designation.  Conversationalists  and 
artists  in  letter-writing  are  rare  with  us.  Sim- 
plicity and  strength  are  the  qualities  that  we 
value  the  most.  The  simple  architecture  of 
the  phrase  is  the  one  which  comes  most  easy 


Education  in  Norway  149 

to  us.  The  influence  of  the  scanty  and  concise 
saga  style  is  noticeable  from  the  days  of  Peder 
Clausson  down  to  Bjornson.  Even  to  the  ten- 
derest  emotions  we  prefer  to  give  a  virile  ex- 
pression. There  is  in  the  voices  of  our  best 
poets  a  strength  and  a  ring  which  may  some- 
times become  declamatory." 

The  difference  between  the  two  languages,  to 
which  Falk  calls  attention,  is  the  price  which 
Norway  has  been  forced  to  pay  for  the  loss  of 
her  independence  during  the  four  centuries 
that  she  was  united  with  Denmark.  The  more 
sober  modern  Norse  historians  believe  that  an 
unconscious  approximation  is  going  on  between 
the  imported  language  and  the  native  one. 
11  While  the  dialects  are  being  influenced 
through  books  and  schools,  and  the  Landsmaal 
is  every  day  adopting  Dano-Norwegian  words 
and  phrases,  other  channels  are  leading  the 
treasures  of  the  popular  language  into  the 
Dano-Norwegian.  The  dialects  have  come  to 
be  the  eternal  and  inexhaustible  fountainhead 
from  which  Norwegian  writing  and  speech 
draw  rejuvenescence  and  power  of  growth. 
The  final  result  of  this  mutual  influence  will 
be  a  uniform  literary  language  with  a  genuine 


150  In  Viking  Land 

Norwegian  tone."  An  account  of  Ibsen  and 
the  other  representatives  of  the  New  Norwe- 
gian literary  style  will  be  found  in  a  later  chap- 
ter on  "  Norse  Letters  and  Henrik  Ibsen." 


HIGHWAYS,   RAILWAYS,   AND   WATERWAYS 

Excellent  posting  system  in  Norway  —  Carrioles,  stolkjaerrea, 
and  sledges  —  Norwegian  horses  —  Roads  and  road-building 
—  Some  fine  mountain  highways  —  How  the  roads  are  kept 
in  repair  —  State  railways  of  Norway  —  Enormous  cost  of 
construction  —  Leading  lines  —  Fjord-boating  facilities  — 
Lake  steamers  —  Canals  of  Norway  —  Postal,  telegraph,  and 
telephone  systems. 

SINCE  the  sixteenth  century  Norway  has  had 
an  excellent  public  posting  system  which  en- 
ables the  traveller  to  go  to  the  most  remote 
parts  of  the  country  at  moderate  and  fixed 
rates.  Fast  and  slow  posting  stations  are  es- 
tablished by  the  government  along  all  the  na- 
tional highways.  At  the  former,  horses  must 
be  kept  in  readiness;  whereas,  at  the  latter, 
the  horses  may  be  in  distant  fields  at  work, 
and  a  couple  of  hours  may  elapse  before  the 
traveller  can  proceed  upon  his  journey.  The 
rates,  which  are  determined  by  the  govern- 
ment, are,  from  fast  stations,  about  seven 
cents  a  mile  for  a  horse  and  two-wheeled  con- 

161 


152  In  Viking  Land 

veyance  or  sledge;  but  from  slow  stations 
they  are  scarcely  more  than  half  that  price. 
When  the  road  is  over  very  steep  mountains 
an  extra  fare  is  charged,  usually  double;  but 
this  is  a  government  regulation  and  is  always 
understood.  The  posting  stations  are,  for  the 
most  part,  isolated  and  solitary  farms.  The 
farmers  undertake  to  provide  rooms  and 
meals,  as  well  as  drivers,  horses,  and  convey- 
ances. Stations  are  usually  from  seven  to  fif- 
teen miles  apart,  and  farmers  are  required  to 
convey  the  traveller  only  as  far  as  the  next 
station. 

Two  kinds  of  wagons  are  used,  the  carriole 
and  the  stolkjaerre.  The  carriole  resembles  an 
American  sulky,  except  that  it  is  springless, 
and  nearly  the  entire  weight  is  forward  of  the 
axle.  It  is  a  two-wheeled  gig  with  the  body 
shaped  like  the  bowl  of  a  spoon.  The  seat,  in 
front  of  the  axletree,  is  fastened  by  cross- 
pieces  to  the  long  slender  shafts  that  project 
behind  and  provide  a  place  for  light  luggage 
and  a  seat  for  the  driver.  The  carriole  is  for 
one  passenger.  It  is  falling  into  disuse,  and 
its  place  is  being  taken  by  the  stolkjaerre,  a 
two-wheeled  cart  that  will  carry  two  pas- 
sengers. It  also  has  long  shafts  which  extend 


Highways,  Railways,  Waterways   153 

under  the  axletree  to  make  a  support  for  the 
luggage  and  a  seat  for  the  driver.  The  pas- 
senger's seat  is  in  front,  perched  on  two 
wooden  bars  stretched  obliquely  upwards  and 
backwards  from  the  front  of  the  vehicle.  The 
drivers,  usually  males  although  sometimes 
girls,  vary  in  age  from  six  to  sixty  years. 

The  Norwegian  horses  are  stout,  stubby,  and 
spirited  little  beasts.  They  are  cream- 
coloured,  high  crested,  and  have  black  manes 
and  tails;  the  manes  are  cropped,  except  the 
forelocks,  which  are  left  to  protect  the  eyes 
from  the  sun,  and  the  tails  are  very  full. 
Horses  are  valued  in  Norway  by  the  size  and 
fulness  of  the  tails.  They  are  remarkably 
hardy,  abstemious,  sure-footed,  and  docile. 
Their  usual  pace  is  from  six  to  seven  miles  an 
hour,  although  they  invariably  gallop  down 
hill  at  a  break-neck  speed.  Nowhere  outside 
of  Mohammedan  countries  does  one  see  horses 
so  kindly  treated  as  in  Norway.  The  well-nigh 
invariable  rule  in  Christian  countries  is  great 
cruelty  toward  horses  and  all  other  dumb 
creatures;  but  the  Norsemen  have,  in  some 
way,  imbibed  the  teachings  of  the  Prophet  of 
Mecca  in  their  treatment  of  their  horses.  At 
posting  stations  and  in  stables  one  frequently 


154  In  Viking  Land 

sees  this  motto:    "  Vser  god  mod  hesten  " 
11  Be  good  to  the  horse."     Norwegian  horses 
are  so  trustworthy  and  intelligent  that  tour- 
ists, as  well  as  peasants,  soon  get  to  look  upon 
them  in  the  light  of  companions. 

In  spite  of  the  enormous  expense  and  diffi- 
culties in  the  way  of  road-building,  Norway 
may  be  said  to  have  an  excellent  system  of 
state  highways.  The  terraces  of  the  mountain 
valleys  along  narrow  river  beds,  where  roads 
are  generally  obliged  to  wind,  present  great 
difficulties;  and  the  steep  slopes  of  the  moun- 
tain plateaus,  particularly  those  that  go  down 
the  abrupt  west  slopes  to  the  fjords,  require 
engineering  skill  of  the  highest  order.  And 
yet  I  know  of  no  other  mountain  roads  quite 
equal  in  excellence  to  the  three  Norwegian 
roads  from  Stalheim  to  Gudvangen,  from  Lorn 
to  Geiranger,  and  over  the  Fillefjeld  to  Laer- 
dalsoren.  The  Geiranger  road  makes  a  descent 
of  3,500  feet  in  less  than  ten  miles.  Many  of 
the  mountain  roads  in  Norway  lie  so  near  the 
limit  of  perpetual  snow  that  they  are  practi- 
cable for  carriages  not  more  than  two  months 
of  the  year;  and  at  the  highest  point  of  the 
national  highway  from  Rodal  to  Odde,  over  the 
Haukelf  jeld,  it  was  necessary  to  take  the  road 


Highways,  Railways,  Waterways   155 

through  a  tunnel  to  avoid  the  eternal  ice-field. 

The  expense  and  energy  necessary  to  keep 
the  roads  in  repair  and  open  during  the  long 
winter  months  are  something  enormous.  For 
the  most  part,  the  roads  are  kept  in  repair 
by  the  property-owners  along  the  route.  Each 
farmer  has  a  portion  of  road  —  the  length 
determined  by  the  value  of  his  farm  —  which 
he  is  required  to  keep  in  repair;  and  the  little 
wooden  posts  along  the  highway,  surmounted 
by  small  gables  to  protect  them  from  the 
weather,  indicate  the  names  of  the  farmers 
responsible  for  the  care  of  the  various  sections. 
Similarly  the  farmers  are  required  to  keep  the 
roads  open  during  the  winter  months.  This 
is  done  by  means  of  huge  triangular  wooden 
ploughs.  The  fact  that  Norway,  a  poor  and 
sparsely  settled  country,  has  spent  more  than 
seventeen  million  dollars  on  public  highways 
during  the  past  fifty  years  speaks  volumes  for 
the  intelligence  and  progressive  character  of 
her  people. 

Norway  has  only  one  mile  of  railway  for 
every  one  hundred  square  miles  of  land;  but 
the  mountainous  character  of  the  country,  the 
heavy  snowfall  during  the  long  winters,  and 
the  thin,  scattered  population  make  railway 


156  In  Viking  Land 

construction  almost  prohibitive.  Nevertheless, 
the  new  kingdom  has  made  a  commendable  be- 
ginning, and  the  state  has  plans  for  enormous 
extensions  during  the  next  twenty-five  years. 
There  are  now  nine  railway  lines  in  the  coun- 
try, with  a  total  mileage  of  one  thousand  five 
hundred  and  eighty-four,  about  half  of  which 
is  broad  gauge.  The  state  railways  have  been 
constructed  partly  by  subscriptions  taken  in 
the  districts  interested  in  the  construction  of 
new  lines  and  partly  at  the  expense  of  the  na- 
tional government. 

The  leading  railway  lines  radiate  from 
Christiania  to  Stockholm,  Goteborg,  Trond- 
hjem,  Gudbransdal,  Telemarken,  and  the  Val- 
ders.  The  longest  line  —  three  hundred  and 
fifty  miles  —  is  from  Christiania  to  Trondhjem 
through  Hamar.  There  is  also  a  relatively 
long  line  —  one  hundred  and  ninety  miles  — 
from  Christiania  up  the  Gudbrandsdal  by  Lake 
Mjosen  and  through  Lillehammer  to  Otta. 
Two  years  ago  (1906)  the  Valders  railway  con- 
necting Christiania  with  Fagernses  —  a  dis- 
tance of  one  hundred  and  thirty-one  miles  - 
was  opened.  This  line  will  connect  with  the 
railway  that  is  being  built  from  Bergen  and 
the  west  coast.  The  western  branch  is  already 


Highways,  Railways,  Waterways   157 

completed  from  Bergen  to  Gulsvik,  a  distance 
of  one  hundred  miles.  One  tenth  of  this  line 
is  through  tunnels,  and  for  sixty  miles  it  is  at 
an  elevation  of  over  2,300  feet.  There  is  a 
short  line  from  Christiansand  to  Bygland  — 
forty-nine  miles;  from  Stavanger  to  Flekke- 
fjord —  ninety-four  miles;  from  Hell  to  Sun- 
nan —  eighty-five  miles;  and  twenty-three 
miles  of  the  Ofoten  railway,  connecting  Nar- 
vik, near  the  North  Cape,  with  Stockholm  (the 
most  northernly  iron  road  in  the  world),  passes 
through  Norwegian  territory.  Norway  spends 
about  five  million  dollars  a  year  on  the  exten- 
sion of  railways. 

When  it  is  recalled  that  two-thirds  of  the 
inhabitants  of  Norway  live  upon  the  coasts 
and  fjords,  the  large  part  which  water  traffic 
plays  in  the  economy  of  the  country  will  be 
easily  understood.  The  coast  being  well  pro- 
tected by  a  chain  of  islands,  the  skjaergaard, 
both  travel  and  commerce  are  carried  on  by 
means  of  small  open  boats.  The  fjord  row- 
boats,  as  a  rule,  are  light  and  pointed,  with 
upright  and  high  prow,  and  they  carry  a  square 
sail.  They  are  light  to  row  and  they  go  cap- 
itally before  the  wind.  There  is  an  extensive 
government  posting  system  on  the  coasts, 


158  In  Viking  Land 

fjords,  and  inland  lakes,  similar  to  that  along 
the  public  highways  already  described.  The 
tariff  from,  fast  stations  for  a  four-oared  boat 
and  sail  with  two  rowers  is  about  twelve  cents 
a  mile;  eighteen  cents  for  three  rowers  and 
a  six-oared  boat,  and  twenty-four  cents  a  mile 
for  a  boat  with  eight  oars  and  four  rowers. 
The  tariff  is  determined  by  the  size  of  the  boat 
and  not  by  the  number  of  passengers.  The 
rowers  are  not  infrequently  girls  and  women. 

The  large  fjords  and  lakes  have  ample 
steamboat  facilities,  the  coast  service  between 
Bergen  and  Trondhjem  being  especially  good. 
The  navigable  channels  of  the  fjords  represent 
a  coast  line  of  twelve  thousand  miles,  and  they 
are  so  entirely  separated  from  the  sea  by 
islands  and  reefs,  and  obstructed  at  their  en- 
trances by  old  moraines,  that  the  fresh  water 
from  the  melting  snows  and  rivers  lies  four 
or  five  feet  deep  on  the  surface.  Small  steam- 
ers ply  on  all  the  larger  fjords  on  which  the 
rates  are  moderate  and  the  accommodations 
fair.  On  most  of  these  boats  a  passenger  pays 
full  fare  for  himself  and  half  fare  for  the  other 
members  of  his  family,  including  his  wife. 

There  is  an  excellent  fjord  service  of 
steamer-yachts  that  makes  the  tour  of  the  most 


Highways,  Railways,  Waterways   159 

picturesque  fjords  during  the  short  summer. 
It  has  two  beautiful  steamer  yachts,  "  Haakon 
VII  "  and  "  Irma,"  which  make  the  trip  from 
Bergen  to  Trondhjem  and  back  in  about  ten 
days,  visiting  the  most  interesting  of  the  west- 
coast  fjords.  The  service  is  excellent,  and 
travellers,  who  do  not  object  to  being  rounded 
up  and  shipped  from  place  to  place  like  so 
many  western  steers,  will  find  the  steamer- 
yacht  service  the  most  comfortable  and  expe- 
ditious. It  was  concerning  this  route  that  the 
English  historian  Froude  wrote:  "  The  scen- 
ery, though  for  ever  changing,  changes  like  the 
pattern  of  a  kaleidoscope,  the  same  materials 
readjusted  in  varying  combinations;  the  same 
rivers  of  sea  water,  the  same  mountain  walls, 
the  same  ice  and  snow  on  the  summits,  the 
same  never-ending  pines  and  birches,  with  an 
emerald  carpet  between  the  stems  where  the 
universal  whortleberry  hides  the  stones  under 
the  most  brilliant  green." 

There  are  also  two  canals  in  Norway  that 
are  used  for  passenger  traffic  —  the  Fredrik- 
shald  canal,  connecting  the  Femsjoen  and 
Skulleriid  lakes,  and  the  Skien-Nordsjo-Ban- 
dak  canal,  connecting  the  Nordsjo  lake  with 
the  Hitterdal  and  the  Bandak  lakes.  Between 


160  In  Viking  Land 

the  Hitterdal  and  the  Nordsjo  lake  there  is  a 
rise  of  fifty  feet  which  is  overcome  by  two 
locks  at  Skien  and  four  at  Loveid ;  and  between 
the  Nordsjo  and  the  Bandak  lakes  there  is  a 
rise  of  one  hundred  and  eighty-seven  feet, 
which  is  overcome  by  fourteen  locks,  five  of 
which  are  around  a  waterfall  —  the  Vrangfos 
—  where  the  average  rise  for  each  lock  is  about 
thirteen  feet. 

The  postal,  telegraph,  and  telephone  sys- 
tems, all  under  government  control,  are  both 
cheaper  and  more  efficient  than  in  the  United 
States,  where  the  two  latter  are  private  monop- 
olies. With  the  exception  of  Switzerland,  Nor- 
way is  more  abundantly  supplied  with  post- 
offices,  in  proportion  to  her  size,  than  any  other 
country  in  the  international  postal  union.  The 
length  of  her  telegraph  lines,  in  relation  to  the 
population  of  the  country,  is  greater  than  in 
any  other  country  in  the  world. 

With  such  splendid  highways,  railways,  wa- 
terways, postal,  telegraph,  and  telephone  serv- 
ice, the  tourist  may  well  agree  with  Professor 
Hjalmar  H.  Boyesen,  that  the  Norsemen  are 
a  wonderful  people  and  Gamle  Norge  a  beau- 
tiful country.  "  The  ocean  roars  along  its 
rock-bound  coast,"  he  writes  rhapsodically, 


STEAMER  -  YACHT,    "  HAAKON   VII." 


LOCK    IN    THE    SKEIN  -  NORDSJO  -  BANDAK   CANAL. 


Highways,  Railways,  Waterways   161 

"  and  during  the  long  dark  winter  the  storms 
howl  and  rage,  and  hurl  the  waves  in  white 
showers  of  spray  against  the  sky.  Great 
swarms  of  sea-birds  drift  like  snow  over  the 
waters,  and  circle  screaming  round  the  lonely 
cliffs.  The  aurora  borealis  flashes  like  a  huge 
shining  fan  over  the  northern  heavens,  and  the 
stars  glitter  with  a  keen  frosty  splendour. 
But  in  the  summer  all  this  is  changed,  sud- 
denly as  by  a  miracle.  Then  the  sun  shines 
warmly,  even  within  the  polar  circle,  innu- 
merable wild  flowers  sprout  forth,  the  swelling 
rivers  dance  singing  to  the  sea,  and  the  birches 
mingle  their  light  green  foliage  with  the  darker 
needles  of  the  pines.  In  the  southern  districts 
it  is  light  throughout  the  night,  even  during 
the  few  hours  when  the  sun  dips  beneath  the 
horizon;  the  ocean  spreads  like  a  great  bur- 
nished mirror  under  the  cloudless  sky,  the 
fishes  leap,  and  the  gulls  and  eider-ducks  rock 
tranquilly  upon  the  waters.  All  along  the 
coast  there  are  excellent  harbours,  which  are 
free  of  ice  both  winter  and  summer.  A  mul- 
titude of  islands,  some  rocky  and  barren,  oth- 
ers covered  with  a  scant  growth  of  grass  and 
trees,  afford  hiding-places  for  ships  and  pas- 
turage for  cattle.  Moreover,  long  arms  of  the 


162  In  Viking  Land 

ocean,  the  so-called  fjords,  penetrate  far  into 
the  country,  and  being  filled  with  water  from 
the  gulf  stream,  which  strikes  the  western  coast 
of  Norway,  tend  greatly  to  modify  the  cli- 
mate." 


CHAPTER   XI 

FAEM  -  LITE   AND   AGRICULTURE 

Small  proportion  of  the  land  surface  susceptible  to  cultiva- 
tion —  Farmers  small  proprietors  —  Variety  of  agricultural 
products  —  Haymaking  —  Horses  and  cattle  — Buildings  on 
a  Norwegian  farmstead  —  The  stabur  —  The  mountain 
saeter  —  Dairying  —  Simple  food  —  Varied  industrial  activi- 
ties of  the  farmers  —  Norwegian  names  —  How  emigration 
has  influenced  agriculture  —  Attempts  to  improve  agricul- 
tural conditions  —  Land  and  cultivation  loans  —  Agricultural 
societies  and  education  —  Increase  of  price  in  landed  prop- 
erty —  The  cotter  system  —  Entails  and  community  prop- 
erty. 

WHEN  it  is  recalled  that  sixty  per  cent,  of 
the  surface  of  Norway  is  occupied  by  bare 
mountains,  twenty-one  per  cent,  by  woodlands, 
eight  per  cent,  by  grazing  lands,  four  per  cent, 
by  lakes,  and  two  per  cent,  by  ice-fields,  it  will 
be  seen  that  very  little  remains  for  meadows 
and  cultivated  fields.  As  a  matter  of  fact  only 
seven-tenths  of  one  per  cent.,  or  one  one-hun- 
dred and  fortieth  of  the  land  surface  of  the 
country,  is  under  cultivation.  Yet  agriculture 
employs  more  men  and  yields  larger  monetary 
returns  than  any  other  occupation  in  Norway. 

163 


164  In  Viking  Land 

The  products  of  the  farms  equal  the  combined 
returns  from  shipping,  lumber,  and  fisheries. 

Nine-tenths  of  the  farms  of  Norway  are 
owned  by  small  proprietors;  and,  although 
the  right  to  dispose  of  landed  property  is  rel- 
atively free,  the  laws  of  the  country  favour 
the  retention  of  the  farms  in  the  families  pos- 
sessing them.  An  old  allodial  right  makes  it 
possible  to  redeem  at  an  appraised  value  a 
farm  that  has  been  sold.  This  right  is  ac- 
quired after  the  property  has  belonged  to  the 
family  for  twenty  years,  but  it  is  lost  after  the 
farm  has  been  in  possession  of  strangers  for 
three  years.  The  best  farms  are  about  the 
banks  of  lakes  and  in  the  narrow  river  valleys ; 
and  although  Norway  has  only  seven  hundred 
and  forty  square  miles  of  land  under  cultiva- 
tion, there  are  numerous  fertile  meadows 
which  are  never  plowed. 

In  a  country  extending  through  thirteen  de- 
grees of  latitude  one  might  naturally  expect 
a  wide  range  of  agricultural  products.  In  the 
southeastern  part  of  Norway,  most  of  the 
plants  and  orchard  fruits  of  central  Europe 
are  found;  whereas,  in  Finmark  and  the 
northern  sections,  it  is  impossible  to  grow  even 
the  most  hardy  plants.  Oats,  barley,  and  rye 


A   FJORD   FARM. 


Farm  Life  and  Agriculture        165 

are  the  chief  cereals,  but  their  production 
scarcely  meets  the  needs  of  the  country.  Po- 
tatoes are  the  only  root  crops  extensively  culti- 
vated. While  the  summers  are  short,  vege- 
tables and  small  fruit  do  excellently  during  the 
long  sun-lit  hours.  Norwegians,  however,  do 
not  seem  habituated  to  a  vegetable  diet,  and 
the  cultivation  of  root  plants  seems  very  gen- 
erally neglected.  Pears,  cherries,  apples,  rasp- 
berries, gooseberries,  and  currants  may  be 
grown  under  favourable  conditions;  but  they 
play  a  minor  role  in  Norwegian  horticulture. 

Haymaking  is  the  serious  business  of  the 
Norwegian  farmer.  Every  blade  of  grass  rep- 
resents money,  and  money  is  scarce  in  Nor- 
way; and  where  there  is  little  to  earn  and 
many  to  keep,  to  borrow  Charles  Kingsley's 
expression,  great  skill  and  ingenuity  are  dis- 
played in  the  collection  and  the  care  of  the  hay. 
The  women  and  girls  take  their  place  in  the 
hay-fields  with  the  men  and  boys  in  the  mow- 
ing, raking,  and  drying  of  the  hay.  Hay-racks 
form  a  part  of  the  agricultural  equipment  of 
the  Norwegian  farmer,  and  they  are  conspic- 
uous objects  in  the  landscape.  Stakes  four  or 
five  feet  high  and  two  or  three  inches  in  diam- 
eter are  stuck  in  the  ground  about  four  feet 


166  In  Viking  Land 

apart.  Horizontal  poles  a  foot  apart  are  fas- 
tened to  the  stakes  with  birch-withe  bands,  and 
upon  these  poles  the  hay  is  hung  to  be  dried. 

The  united  powers  of  sun  and  wind  dry  the 
hay  very  rapidly ;  and  in  a  country  where  rain- 
fall is  frequent,  it  is  necessary  not  only  to  make 
hay  but  to  dry  it  while  the  sun  shines.  This 
swift  drying  process  gives  the  hay  a  fresh  look 
and  a  delicious  odour;  and  I  was  told  that  it 
was  more  nutritious  and  wholesome  than  the 
yellow  withered  stuff  called  hay  in  the  United 
States.  Some  of  the  hay  is  collected  along  the 
narrow  edges  of  the  fjords,  but  much  of  it 
comes  from  the  steep  uplands,  and  is  brought 
to  the  valley  by  means  of  a  thick  galvanized 
wire  stretched  from  the  cliff  to  the  bottom  of 
the  valley,  where  it  is  fastened  to  the  end  of 
a  windlass.  A  bale  of  hay  is  attached  to  the 
wire  at  the  top  of  the  mountain,  the  wire  is 
tightened  by  the  windlass,  and  the  hay  de- 
scends rapidly  to  the  valley. 

The  cow  is  a  staple  of  wealth  to  the  people 
of  Scandinavia.  The  Norwegian  cow  is  dimin- 
utive in  size,  dun-coloured,  docile  in  habits, 
and  an  excellent  milk  producer.  I  was  told 
that  one  of  these  delicate-looking  cows,  if  well 
fed,  would  average  from  six  hundred  to  nine 


HAYING    IN    THE    FJORDS. 


DRYING    HAY. 


Farm  Life  and  Agriculture        167 

hundred  gallons  of  milk  a  year.  The  moun- 
tain saeters  are  the  centres  of  the  butter  and 
cheese  industry  during  the  summer  months. 

Norway  is  abundantly  supplied  with  an  ex- 
cellent breed  of  small  but  hardy  horses.  The 
cream-coloured  fjord  horses  are  only  sixty 
inches  high.  They  are  active,  hardy,  and  gen- 
tle ;  and  in  the  mountainous  parts  of  the  coun- 
try they  are  vastly  more  serviceable  than  mules 
would  be.  The  Gudbransdalen  breed,  found 
chiefly  in  the  mountain  valleys,  are  larger  than 
the  fjord  horses,  and  they  are  generally  brown 
or  black  in  colour.  Good  horses  in  Norway 
bring  surprisingly  high  prices.  Working 
horses  cost  from  $200  to  $350  and  the  best 
stallions  bring  as  much  as  $2,500. 

A  Norwegian  farmstead  as  a  rule  includes 
a  cluster  of  buildings — (1)  a  dwelling-house, 
(2)  an  out-kitchen  (ildhaus),  (3)  a  storehouse 
(stabur),  (4)  a  bath  or  smoke-house  (badstue), 
(5)  barns  and  sheds,  and  (6)  a  mountain  dairy 
(saeter).  The  better  farmhouses  are  wooden 
structures  built  on  massive  stone  foundations, 
and  those  of  the  poorer  farmers  are  log-framed 
structures  roofed  with  birch  bark  and  turf-sod. 
The  interiors  of  most  farmhouses  are  finished, 
not  with  plaster  and  wall-paper,  but  just  with 


168  In  Viking  Land 

good  honest  wood.  There  is  generally  one 
room  of  fair  size  that  serves  the  manifold  pur- 
pose of  kitchen,  dining-room,  assembly  hall, 
and  sleeping  chamber.  Here  also  the  indoor 
industries  are  carried  on  during  the  long  win- 
ter months.  The  larger  farmhouses  have  a 
small  bed-chamber  for  the  farmer  and  his  wife, 
and  sometimes  there  are  sleeping  apartments 
on  the  second  floor  for  the  children. 

An  out-kitchen  is  usually  built  near  the 
dwelling.  Such  domestic  occupations  as  wash- 
ing, baking,  and  brewing  are  performed  here; 
and  here  the  fladbrod,  the  Norwegian  staff  of 
life,  is  manufactured.  Fladbrod  is  made  from 
the  unfermented  dough  of  barley  and  oatmeal ; 
it  is  rolled  out  on  a  large  board  to  the  thinness 
of  a  wafer  and  two  or  three  feet  in  diameter; 
it  is  then  baked  on  a  large  iron  griddle  which 
is  kept  hot  by  glowing  embers  beneath,  after 
which  it  is  stored  away  for  use  during  the 
year. 

Near  the  dwelling  is  the  stabur,  or  store- 
house, which  is  built  on  piles  about  four  feet 
from  the  ground.  It  has  special  compartments 
for  flour,  dried  and  salted  fish  and  meat,  blan- 
kets, sheepskins,  and  such  household  appurte- 
nances as  are  not  required  during  the  summer 


A    NORWEGIAN    "  MAUD    MULLER." 


Farm  Life  and  Agriculture        169 

months.  The  year's  supply  of  fladbrod  is  gen- 
erally ranged  along  the  walls  of  the  stabur  in 
great  piles. 

The  bath-house,  still  found  on  some  farms 
where  it  is  more  often  used  for  smoking  meat 
or  storing  grain,  has  fallen  into  disuse  since 
the  introduction  of  Christianity  into  Norway. 
During  pagan  days  vapour  baths  were  common 
in  the  country  and  freely  used,  but  the  Chris- 
tian priests  and  monks  took  up  arms  against 
the  care  of  the  body,  which  was  flesh  and  rep- 
resented the  devil;  and  they  set  themselves  so 
strongly  against  the  bathing  habit  that  the 
badstue  is  no  longer  regarded  as  a  necessary 
building  of  a  Norwegian  farmstead.  There 
are  also  on  the  farms  the  necessary  barns  and 
sheds  for  the  horses  and  the  cattle  with  lofts 
for  the  hay. 

A  saeter,  or  mountain  dairy,  is  connected 
with  most  Norwegian  farms.  It  is  a  small 
building  on  the  mountains,  where  some  mem- 
bers of  the  family,  usually  the  girls,  live  dur- 
ing the  summer  months.  Saeters  are  often 
from  twenty  to  forty  miles  away,  and  they  are 
reached  only  by  tortuous  and  dangerous  moun- 
tain paths.  In  the  late  spring  the  cattle  are 
taken  hither  by  young  women  and  girls  who 


170  In  Viking  Land 

make  butter  and  cheese,  gather  hay,  knit  stock- 
ings, and  embroider  linen  during  the  two  or 
three  months  they  live  here.  The  dwelling  is 
usually  a  rude  log  hut  with  a  single  room,  mud 
floor,  an  open  fireplace  without  chimney,  and 
a  few  pieces  of  rough  extemporized  furniture. 
Sheds  and  pens  surround  the  hut,  and  there 
are  patches  of  enclosed  ground  where  hay  is 
made  and  where  the  younger  members  of  the 
flocks  are  protected.  The  cattle  are  called  at 
night  by  a  horn  made  of  birch  bark.  When 
blown  lustily  it  gives  a  clear  note  not  unlike 
the  cornet,  and  the  cattle  invariably  respond 
to  its  sound. 

The  saeter  is  of  the  utmost  importance  to  the 
small  farmer.  The  meagre  pittance  of  ground 
which  surrounds  his  homestead  is  insufficient 
to  supply  his  simplest  needs;  but  the  saeter  not 
only  furnishes  pasture  for  his  cattle,  but  it 
often  provides  the  winter's  supply  of  hay. 
Tourists  do  not  customarily  envy  Norse  maid- 
ens their  long  summer's  isolation;  but  Bjorn- 
son,  one  of  the  first  Norwegian  authors,  writes 
of  it :  "  The  life  up  there  in  the  vast  solitude, 
with  the  snow-capped  mountains  in  the  dis- 
tance, often  with  a  mountain  lake  close  by,  with 
the  cow-bells,  the  baying  of  dogs,  the  sound  of 


Farm  Life  and  Agriculture        171 

the  mountain  horns,  and  the  hallooing  of  the 
girls  —  life  up  there  with  its  peaceful  work 
and  the  solemn  stillness  of  the  evening  after 
the  work  is  done  —  is  the  happiest  a  Norwe- 
gian peasant  knows." 

The  late  King  Oscar  II  of  Norway  and 
Sweden  wrote  concerning  a  visit  which  he  paid 
to  a  saeter  in  the  Sogne  district : ' '  How  strange 
the  saeter  life  and  dwellings  appear.  How  poor 
at  first  sight  and  yet  how  hearty  and  unex- 
pectedly lavish  is  the  hospitality  which  the  sim- 
ple children  of  the  mountains  extend  to  the 
weary  traveller.  Milk,  warm  from  the  cows, 
fresh-churned  butter,  reindeer  meat,  and  a  cou- 
ple of  delicious  trout  which  we  have  just  seen 
taken  from  the  lake  below,  form  a  regal  feast 
indeed;  and  spiced  with  the  keen  appetite 
which  the  air  up  here  creates,  the  meal  can  only 
be  equalled  by  the  luxury  of  reposing  on  a  soft 
couch  of  fresh  fragrant  hay." 

The  food  of  the  Norwegian  farmers  is  sim- 
ple and  monotonous.  Fish  —  salt,  dried,  and 
fresh  —  plays  a  leading  role  in  the  diet;  also 
the  flesh  of  the  reindeer.  Vegetables,  to  except 
potatoes,  there  are  none.  There  are  ten  kinds 
of  cheese  of  all  ages,  colours,  and  apparent 
ingredients.  One  of  the  favourites  is  goat's 


172  In  Viking  Land 

cheese  made  from  whey  which  is  boiled  until 
all  the  water  has  been  evaporated,  when  it  be- 
comes dark  brown  in  colour.  A  fermented 
cheese  made  from  sour  skim  milk  is  also  a 
favourite.  Quantities  of  fladbrod  are  eaten, 
and  in  some  sections  porridge  and  milk.  Demo- 
cratic notions  everywhere  prevail,  and  the  help 
always  eat  with  the  family. 

Because  of  his  isolation,  the  Norwegian 
farmer  is  usually  jack-of -all-trades,  —  black- 
smith, carpenter,  tanner,  and  miller,  in  addition 
to  being  farmer.  He  grinds  his  grain  between 
his  own  mill-stones  at  a  little  water-mill;  and 
formerly  he  made  most  of  the  scant  furniture 
and  the  household  utensils.  At  an  earlier 
period  the  Norwegian  farmer  possessed  con- 
siderable skill  in  the  use  of  wood,  and  his  ac- 
complishments ranged  from  wooden  spoons  to 
timber  houses.  He  was  likewise  singularly  deft 
at  carving,  and  both  spoon  and  house  were 
often  highly  ornamented.  By  means  of  the 
hand-loom  which  he  built,  his  wife  and  daugh- 
ters wove  homespun  from  flax  and  wool  which 
clothed  the  family  and  furnished  the  bedding, 
table  linen,  etc. 

Places  and  people  in  Norway  generally  take 
the  names  of  farms.  Thus  I  found  at  Loen 


Farm  Life  and  Agriculture        173 

that  all  the  people  residing  there  were  named 
Loen,  although  not  necessarily  related  by  blood 
ties.  If  a  young  man,  say  Hans  Loen,  ac- 
quires a  farm  at  Aure  by  marriage,  he  is  there- 
after known  as  Hans  Aure.  Father  and  son 
may  have  different  family  names  if  they  hap- 
pened to  be  born  in  different  places,  as  is  some- 
times the  case. 

The  agricultural  interests  of  Norway  have 
suffered  unmistakably  by  the  enormous  emi- 
gration to  the  United  States.  Two-thirds  of 
the  Norwegians  of  the  world  live  in  Wisconsin, 
Iowa,  Minnesota,  and  the  Dakotas.  Nearly 
every  Norwegian  farmstead  has  kinsmen  in  our 
country;  and  the  strong  and  vigorous  always 
emigrate,  thus  leaving  the  farms  at  home  in 
charge  of  the  old  and  the  infirm.  America  has 
been  greatly  benefited  by  this  almost  incessant 
exodus;  for  the  Norse  peasants  have  without 
an  exception  made  splendid  citizens,  the  best, 
in  fact,  that  have  come  to  us  from  Europe. 

Commenting  on  the  enormous  emigration 
from  the  Norwegian  farms,  William  Eleroy 
Curtis  remarks:  "  Notwithstanding  the  large 
emigration  of  young  people,  for  whom  the 
Norwegian  farms  are  too  small,  it  is  apparent 
that  the  development  of  Norway  is  continually 


174  In  Viking  Land 

progressing  along  the  highest  lines,  and  that 
the  tendency  of  the  people  is  upward,  socially 
and  industrially,  in  culture  and  in  wealth.  The 
population  of  the  kingdom  not  only  holds  its 
own,  but  shows  a  slight  increase,  which  seems 
remarkable  because  of  the  continual  drain  of 
young,  able-bodied  men  and  women  who  have 
removed  to  our  western  states.  In  all  public 
movements,  in  all  social,  commercial,  and  in- 
dustrial activities,  in  art,  science,  and  litera- 
ture, in  wealth  and  prosperity,  Norway  stands 
abreast  of  the  most  advanced  nations  of  Eu- 
rope; but  its  progress  is  not  won  without 
greater  effort  than  any  other  people  put  forth, 
and  the  application  of  thrift  and  industry  else- 
where unknown,  but  which  is  required  in  a 
climate  so  bleak  and  inhospitable  and  by  a  soil 
so  wild  and  rocky.  None  but  a  race  like  .the 
Norsemen  could  have  kept  a  foothold  here." 
Norwegian  economists  recognize  the  loss  to 
the  country  through  emigration,  and  in  recent 
years  the  national  parliament  has  attempted 
to  improve  the  condition  of  the  agricultural 
labourers.  A  fund  of  $135,000  has  been  set 
aside  by  the  government  for  the  purchase  of 
land.  Loans  are  granted  to  municipalities  (1) 
for  the  purpose  of  buying  large  estates  to  be 


Farm  Life  and  Agriculture        175 

assigned  to  people  without  means  at  the  pur- 
chase price,  in  plots  of  not  more  than  twelve 
acres  of  tillable  soil,  and  (2)  for  the  purpose 
of  being  granted  as  loans  on  the  security  of 
parcels  of  the  same  size,  which  people  without 
means  may  acquire  as  freehold  property.  The 
interest  on  these  loans  is  from  three  to  four 
per  cent.,  and  the  time  of  payment  is  up  to 
twenty-five  years. 

There  is  also  a  cultivation  fund  of  $270,000 
from  which  loans  are  granted  for  the  purpose 
of  cultivating  and  draining  the  soil.  The  in- 
terest is  two  and  one-half  per  cent,  and  the 
time  of  repayment  is  up  to  twenty  years,  in- 
cluding five  years  in  which  no  instalments  are 
required.  Such  loans  are  granted  (1)  on  the 
security  of  mortgages  and  (2)  on  the  guaran- 
tee of  the  municipality. 

Agriculture  societies  —  national  and  county 
—  receive  government  grants  for  the  purpose 
of  holding  meetings  and  issuing  documents 
that  might  be  of  service  to  the  farmers.  There 
is  also  a  staff  of  surveyors  paid  by  the  state 
to  assist  in  the  public  allotment  of  land  and 
otherwise  to  render  assistance  to  needy  lot- 
owners. 

Considerable  attention  is  also  being  given 


176  In  Viking  Land 

to'  the  matter  of  agricultural  education.  Con- 
nected with  the  state  agricultural  college  is  an 
experimental  farm,  where  not  only  farmers  but 
also  dairymen,  gardeners,  and  foresters  re- 
ceive practical  instruction. 

While  farm-lands  in  most  of  the  countries  of 
Europe  are  steadily  decreasing  in  price,  in 
Norway  there  has  been  marked  increase  even 
during  times  of  agricultural  depression.  The 
return  of  many  natives  from  the  United  States 
has  doubtless  been  a  factor  in  the  increased 
valuation  of  farm-lands.  Tandberg  calls  at- 
tention to  the  fact  that  the  Norwegian  farms 
being  small,  the  fall  in  prices  of  landed  prop- 
erty has  chiefly  affected  the  larger  estates,  and 
that  in  Norway  more  than  in  any  other  country 
in  Europe  farming  is  combined  with  other 
means  of  livelihood,  such  as  forestry  and  fish- 
ing; and  when  times  have  been  favourable  for 
the  latter,  this  has  also  benefited  husbandry. 

Connected  with  the  larger  farms  of  Norway 
are  cotters'  places  —  farm  labourers  who  have 
leased  a  small  part  of  the  farm  for  a  definite 
period  (often  during  their  natural  lives).  In 
some  cases  the  cotter  leases  only  a  building- 
lot  with  a  garden  attached ;  in  other  cases  sev- 
eral acres  of  ground.  The  cotter  is  usually 


Farm  Life  and  Agriculture        177 

required  to  work  on  the  farm  of  the  owner  at 
certain  times  of  the  year  for  a  small  wage  reg- 
ulated by  contract.  There  are  something  more 
than  thirty  thousand  cotters  in  the  country,  but 
the  number  is  steadily  decreasing.  The  sys- 
tem, it  is  claimed,  produces  capable  and  reli- 
able workmen  not  only  for  the  farms  but  also 
for  the  various  trades. 

It  is  no  longer  permitted  to  establish  entails 
which  cannot  be  sold  or  mortgaged,  and  the 
national  government  in  recent  years  has  sought 
to  further  the  partition  and  allotment  of  the 
common  ownership  of  land.  Pastures  and 
other  grazing  lands  are  still  often  held  by  the 
community,  and  similarly  mountain  pastures. 
But  the  community  farms,  when  the  consent 
of  all  the  part-owners  and  tenants  has  been 
secured,  may  now  be  partitioned  by  surveyors 
appointed  by  the  public  authorities. 


CHAPTER   XH 

FORESTS,     FISHERIES,     AND     COMMERCE 

Vast  forest  lands  of  Norway  —  Conifers  the  most  important 
trees  —  Extensive  use  of  birch  for  wood-pulp  —  The  lumber 
industries  —  Value  of  timber  products  —  Importance  of  the 
fisheries  —  Cod,  herring,  and  mackerel  —  Crew  of  a  fishing 
smack  —  Handicraft  industries  in  Norway  —  Manufactures 
—  Mineral  products  —  Importance  of  commerce  —  Exports 
and  imports  —  Foreign  trade  relations. 

MORE  than  a  fifth  of  the  area  of  Norway  is 
covered  with  forests.  The  chief  woodlands  are 
in  the  basins  of  the  Trondhjem  and  the  Chris- 
tiania  fjords  and  on  the  eastern  slopes  of  the 
Langfjeld.  In  Nordland,  Tromso,  and  Fin- 
mark  there  are  limited  scattered  forest  areas, 
but  the  west  coast  south  of  Trondhjem  is  prac- 
tically devoid  of  forests,  except  on  islands  and 
promontories  where  protection  is  afforded 
ffom  the  sea-winds.  Six  per  cent,  of  Finmark, 
the  northernmost  county,  is  covered  by  forests, 
and  sixty-four  per  cent,  of  Akershus,  an  inland 
county  north  of  Christiania.  One-fourth  of  the 
districts  of  Norway  have  a  surplus  of  forests, 

178 


Forests,  Fisheries,  and  Commerce     179 

one-fourth  have  sufficient  for  their  own  use, 
and  the  balance  are  required  to  buy. 

Three-fourths  of  the  forest  area  of  the 
country  are  covered  with  conifers  and  one- 
fourth  with  foliage  trees.  The  Scotch  fir,  the 
spruce,  and  the  hardy  birch,  with  a  sprinkling 
of  elm,  ash,  and  oak,  constitute  the  chief  trees 
of  the  country.  On  the  eastern  slopes  of  the 
plateaus  the  fir  and  spruce  forests  are  found 
up  to  an  altitude  of  2,500  feet  above  sea-level; 
from  that  elevation  to  3,500  the  birch,  and 
above  3,500  shrubs  and  dwarf  birch.  North  of 
the  polar  circle  the  birch  is  predominant  and 
forms  the  great  bulk  of  the  forests.  There  are 
two  kinds  of  birch  —  the  lowland,  or  white 
birch  with  its  graceful,  drooping  branches,  and 
the  hardy  mountain  birch  which  is  darker  in 
colour  and  more  stunted  in  form. 

The  existence  of  the  Norwegian  forests  is 
threatened  by  the  fact  that  the  spruce  of  that 
country  contains  a  relatively  small  amount  of 
resin  and  is  in  much  demand  in  the  manufac- 
ture of  paper.  But  if  the  modern  world  de- 
mands newspapers  as  large  as  barn  doors  the 
forests  of  Norway  will  have  to  suffer.  The 
bark  of  the  spruce  is  used  for  tanning  and  that 
of  the  birch  for  roofing.  The  leaves  of  the  lat- 


180  In  Viking  Land 

ter  also  provide  fodder  for  the  cattle  and  the 
sheep. 

In  the  great  timber  district  of  the  mountain 
ranges  drained  by  the  Glommen  river,  the  trees 
are  felled  in  winter  and  the  logs  are  dragged 
to  the  tops  of  the  steep  mountain  sides  where 
they  are  slid  down  to  the  river  or  they  are 
carted  on  sledges  to  the  river's  edge.  During 
the  early  summer,  after  the  ice  has  gone,  and 
while  the  rivers  are  yet  full  of  water,  they  are 
floated  down  the  streams  to  the  saw-mills.  But, 
as  the  logs  are  constantly  driven  into  corners 
by  strong  currents  or  are  piled  up  against  the 
piers  of  bridges,  floaters  are  employed  along 
the  rivers  to  keep  them  free.  Log-floating  is 
both  the  most  dangerous  and  the  most  un- 
healthful  occupation  in  Norway.  Men  often 
fall  into  the  streams;  they  are  forced  to  sleep 
on  the  cold  ground  in  uninhabited  parts  of  the 
country;  they  frequently  fall  from  the  rolling 
logs  into  the  whirling  currents  and  are  tossed 
against  the  sharp  rocks ;  and  the  marvel  is  not 
that  the  death  rate  among  floaters  is  so  high, 
but  that  any  of  them  survive  the  perilous  occu- 
pation. 

The  value  of  the  exports  of  forest  products 
and  timber  industries  reaches  about  eighteen 


Forests,  Fisheries,  and  Commerce    181 

million  dollars  a  year  and  the  combined  forest 
industries  furnish  employment  to  a  large  num- 
ber of  labourers.  The  state  forests  occupy 
about  3,500  square  miles,  more  than  half  being 
located  in  the  northern  provinces  of  Tromso 
and  Finmark.  The  state  also  has  nurseries  at 
Vossevangen  and  Hamar  and  three  forestry 
schools,  by  means  of  which  widespread  interest 
in  tree-planting  has  been  aroused.  Destructive 
forest  fires  and  the  slaughter  of  the  trees  by 
the  remarkable  development  of  the  wood-pulp 
industries  have  emphasized  in  recent  times  the 
need  of  larger  forest  reserves  and  closer  gov- 
ernment supervision.  Under  the  most  favour- 
able conditions  the  pine  requires  from  seventy- 
five  to  one  hundred  years  to  yield  timber 
twenty-five  feet  in  length  and  ten  inches  in 
diameter  at  the  top.  Spruce  will  reach  the 
same  size  in  seventy-five  or  eighty  years.  In 
the  higher  altitudes  of  the  central  part  of  the 
country  the  pine  requires  one  hundred  and 
fifty  years  and  in  the  northern  provinces  two 
hundred  years.  The  pine  rarely  exceeds  one 
hundred  feet  in  height  and  it  decreases  toward 
the  coast  and  northwards. 

The  fisheries  of  Norway  are  among  the  most 
important  in  the  world,  yielding  the  nation 


182  In  Viking  Land 

more  than  seven  million  dollars  a  year  and 
furnishing  employment  to  eighty  thousand 
men.  The  sea-fisheries  play  the  chief  part  in 
this  branch  of  industry.  The  long  coast  line 
and  the  great  ocean  depth  near  the  coast  com- 
bine to  give  the  fisheries  of  Norway  unusual 
advantages.  Their  abundance  is  also  due  to 
the  presence  of  masses  of  glutinous  matter,  ap- 
parently living  protoplasm,  which  furnishes 
nutriment  for  millions  of  animalcules  which 
again  become  food  for  the  herring  and  other 
fish.  The  fish  are  mainly  of  the  round  sort 
found  in  deep  waters,  the  cod,  herring,  and 
mackerel  being  the  most  important. 

The  cod  yields  the  largest  monetary  returns. 
This  fish  migrates  to  the  coast  of  Norway  to 
spawn  and  in  search  of  food.  The  best  cod  fish- 
eries are  in  Eomsdal,  Nordland,  and  Tromso 
counties,  the  Lofoten  islands  in  Tromso  alone 
furnishing  employment  to  more  than  four  thou- 
sand men.  The  cod  weighs  from  eight  to 
twenty  pounds  and  measures  from  five  to  six 
feet  in  length.  Some  are  merely  dried  after 
having  been  cleaned.  This  is  done  by  hanging 
them  by  the  tail  on  wooden  frames.  The  others 
are  sent  to  the  salting  stations  where  they  are 
salted  and  dried  on  the  flat  rocks.  A  fish  weigh- 


A    FISHING    VILLAGE. 


DRYING    CODFISH. 


Forests,  Fisheries,  and  Commerce      183 

ing  ten  pounds  will  yield  two  pounds  of  salted 
cod,  the  loss  being  due  to  the  removal  of  the 
head  and  entrails  and  the  drying  out  of  the 
water. 

There  are  numerous  secondary  products 
from  the  cod,  the  most  valuable  being  the  cod 
liver  oil.  The  livers  of  the  fish  are  exposed  to 
a  jet  of  superheated  steam  which  destroys  the 
liver  cells  and  causes  the  small  drops  of  oil  to 
run  together.  The  roe  are  salted  and  sent  to 
France  for  bait  in  the  sardine  fisheries,  and 
manure  is  made  from  the  heads  and  entrails. 

The  herring  shoals  are  less  certain  than  the 
cod.  Unless  it  is  an  off  year,  however,  they 
come  to  Norway  in  winter  and  again  in  the  late 
summer.  The  first  migration  is  for  purposes 
of  spawning,  when  they  deposit  their  eggs 
among  the  islands  of  the  western  coast.  They 
are  cleaned  as  caught,  placed  in  barrels  between 
layers  of  salt,  and  sent  to  Trondhjem,  Sta- 
vanger,  and  Bergen,  from  whence  they  are 
shipped  to  Germany,  Russia,  and  Sweden. 

Considerable  quantities  of  mackerel  are 
found  during  the  summer  as  far  north  as  the 
Trondhjem  fjord.  The  salmon  fisheries,  ex- 
tending from  Bergen  to  Trondhjem,  were  for- 
merly important,  but  the  best  salmon  streams 


184  In  Viking  Land 

have  been  leased  to  Englishmen.  Wherever 
the  tourist  finds  a  salmon  stream  he  is  rea- 
sonably certain  to  find  one  of  John  Bull's  sub- 
jects. Norway  has  a  large  arctic  fleet  which 
operates  from  Greenland  and  Jan  Mayen  on 
the  west  to  Spitzbergen  and  Novaya  Zemlya 
on  the  east,  engaged  in  the  capture  of  whales, 
seals,  and  walrus  sharks. 

The  crew  of  a  fishing  boat  consists  of  from 
four  to  six  men,  each  with  his  share  in  the 
catch.  The  skipper,  the  most  experienced  sea- 
man of  the  party,  steers  the  boat  and  superin- 
tends the  fishing.  The  life  is  rough;  the  food 
is  severely  plain ;  the  discomforts  are  multitudi- 
nous, and  the  mortality,  due  to  stormy  weather 
and  accidents,  is  something  enormous;  but  the 
hope  of  great  and  immediate  gain  leads  the 
Norsemen  to  forget  hardships  and  take  chances. 

The  coasting  smacks  used  for  the  transpor- 
tation of  the  fish  are  still  built  on  the  same 
lines  as  those  used  in  the  old  viking  days,  and 
some  of  them  bear  striking  resemblance  to  the 
recovered  mediaeval  boats  now  exhibited  at 
Christiania  and  described  elsewhere  in  this 
work.  The  Nordland  boat,  one  of  the  best 
modern  types,  is  from  thirty  to  forty  feet  in 
length  and  from  seven  to  ten  feet  in  beam.  It 


Forests,  Fisheries,  and  Commerce    185 

is  entirely  open  except  for  five  or  six  feet  of 
arched  roof  at  one  end  which  serves  the  pur- 
pose of  a  cabin.  It  draws  little  water,  is  ex- 
tremely graceful,  and  its  great  safety  consists 
in  its  lightness. 

In  the  matter  of  the  handicraft  industries 
carried  on  in  the  homes,  Norway  has  long  taken 
high  rank.  As  early  as  the  ninth  century  her 
artisans  were  skilled  in  the  manufacture  of 
arms,  farming  implements,  and  boats,  and  her 
women  in  cloth-weaving  and  embroidery.  Dur- 
ing recent  times  the  ease  and  cheapness  with 
which  foreign  products  could  be  obtained 
caused  a  marked  decline  in  home  industries; 
but  at  the  present  moment  a  vigorous  effort  is 
being  made  to  rehabilitate  the  domestic  indus- 
tries of  Gamle  Norge.  A  national  domestic  in- 
dustry association,  organized  in  1891,  has  de- 
veloped considerable  interest  and  skill  in  the 
manufacture  of  hand-carved  articles,  sheath- 
knives,  skis,  sledges,  and  woven  and  embroid- 
ered woollen  and  linen  goods  after  the  old  Nor- 
wegian patterns. 

The  manufacture  of  lumber  and  wooden  ware 
is  one  of  the  leading  industrial  pursuits.  With 
the  exception  of  the  two  most  northern  coun- 
ties, practically  every  section  of  the  country  is 


186  In  Viking  Land 

represented  by  saw-mills  and  planing-naills. 
Ship-building  in  recent  times  has  attained  con- 
siderable importance,  and  the  manufacture  of 
paper  of  the  chemical  wood-pulp  variety  has 
become  one  of  the  leading  industries.  There 
are  a  few  cloth,  rope,  and  jersey  mills  at  Ber- 
gen and  Christiania,  but  the  textile  industries 
of  Norway  are  relatively  unimportant.  On  the 
other  hand,  leather,  India  rubber,  glass,  metal 
and  chemical  industries  have  become  important 
in  late  years. 

Norway  is  not  rich  in  mineral  products.  The 
combined  mining  industries  do  not  yield  more 
than  two  million  dollars  a  year  and  they  fur- 
nish employment  to  less  than  four  thousand 
men.  The  Kongsberg  silver  mines  have  been 
operated  for  more  than  three  hundred  years, 
but  the  recent  fall  in  the  price  of  silver  has 
reduced  the  output.  The  copper  mines  at  Korb's 
have  been  operated  for  two  hundred  and  fifty 
years,  and  there  are  less  important  copper 
mines  in  Nordland,  Telemarken,  and  the  Har- 
danger.  There  are  mines  of  iron  ore  at  Aren- 
dal  and  elsewhere,  but  the  rise  in  the  cost  of 
charcoal,  due  to  the  scarcity  of  wood,  has 
greatly  crippled  the  iron  industry.  There  are 
important  soapstone  quarries  in  the  Gudbrans- 


Forests,  Fisheries,  and  Commerce    187 

dal  and  the  Trondhjem  basin;  green  coloured 
slate  in  the  Valders  and  at  Vossevangen;  and 
granite,  syenite,  and  porphyry  in  many  parts 
of  the  country. 

Measured  by  population  and  national  wealth, 
the  commerce  of  Norway  is  relatively  impor- 
tant, due  in  a  large  measure  to  her  enormous 
merchant  marine  and  the  efficiency  of  her  hardy 
seamen.  Relatively  to  the  population  of  the 
country,  Norway  has  the  largest  merchant  fleet 
in  the  world,  and  in  the  matter  of  steamships 
and  sailing  vessels  she  is  surpassed  by  only 
three  countries  —  Great  Britain,  Germany,  and 
the  United  States.  Not  only  is  her  fleet  large 
but  her  service  is  efficient.  Norwegian  seamen 
the  world  over  are  esteemed  for  ability  and 
honesty,  inspiring  all  commercial  nations  with 
confidence  that  goods  carried  in  Norse  bottoms 
will  be  carefully  and  conscientiously  treated; 
and  her  seamen  are  everywhere  sought  to  man 
foreign  vessels. 

The  imports  of  Norway  are  still  much  in  ex- 
cess of  the  exports.  Among  imported  articles 
of  consumption,  food  and  drink  are  of  the 
greatest  importance.  Cereals  represent  about 
half  the  value  of  the  food  and  drink  articles 
imported.  Of  the  cereal  import,  forty-nine  per 


188  In  Viking  Land 

cent,  is  for  rye,  twenty-three  per  cent,  for  bar- 
ley, two  per  cent,  for  wheat,  eight  per  cent,  for 
wheat  flour,  and  seven  per  cent,  for  rye  flour. 
Groceries  come  second  in  the  food  import  ac- 
count, three-fourths  of  which  are  represented 
by  coffee  and  sugar.  There  has  been  marked 
increase  in  the  consumption  of  sugar  since 
the  reduction  in  the  duty,  and  a  commend- 
able decrease  in  the  consumption  of  tobacco. 
Textile  goods  —  woollen  and  cotton  goods  and 
yarn  —  occupy  the  third  place  in  the  import 
of  articles  of  consumption,  and  household 
goods  and  furniture  follow.  Among  imports 
for  production  may  be  mentioned  coal,  hides 
and  skins,  raw  materials  for  textile  industries, 
petroleum,  steam-engines,  locomotives,  and 
metal  goods. 

Timber  and  fishery  products,  as  elsewhere 
noted,  are  the  most  important  articles  of  ex- 
port, representing  sixty-five  per  cent,  of  the 
export  trade.  In  recent  years  much  of  the 
lumber  exported  has  been  as  dressed  deal  and 
boards,  and  there  has  been  enormous  increase 
in  the  sale  of  wood-pulp  products.  Products 
from  agriculture  and  cattle-raising  have  also 
advanced  rapidly,  due  to  the  large  export  trade 
in  butter,  margarine,  and  condensed  milk. 


A    FJORD    FLOUR    MILL. 


Forests,  Fisheries,  and  Commerce    189 

Among  other  important  items  of  export  may 
be  named  packing-paper,  ships,  dressed  stone, 
metals  and  ores,  and  textile  manufactures. 

Great  Britain  and  Germany  get  the  lion's 
share  of  Norway's  commerce.  Sweden,  Russia, 
the  Netherlands,  Denmark,  and  Belgium  follow. 
The  United  States  does  not  have  important 
trade  relations  directly  with  Norway,  although 
there  has  been  marked  increase  in  the  importa- 
tion of  wheat  and  flour  during  recent  years. 
The  three  most  important  commercial  cities  — 
Christiania,  Bergen,  and  Trondhjem  —  have 
sixty-two  per  cent,  of  the  foreign  commerce  of 
the  country.  Stavanger,  Christiansund,  Fred- 
rikstad,  Drammen,  Aalesund,  Porsgrund,  and 
Skien  get  the  balance.  Bergen  has  the  largest 
merchant  fleet.  A  fourth  of  the  trade  of  Nor- 
wegian ships  is  with  Great  Britain,  and  some- 
thing more  than  a  fifth  with  the  Americas.  A 
trifle  more  than  five  per  cent,  of  the  population 
make  their  living  by  trade. 


CHAPTER   XIII 

FJOKDS    OF    THE    WEST    COAST 

Character  of  Norwegian  fjords  and  their  branches  —  Their 
individuality  —  An  American  traveller's  description  —  The 
Hardanger  f jord  and  Odde  —  Native  costumes  —  Waterfalls 
of  the  Hardanger  —  The  Sogne  and  the  Naero  fjords  —  The 
Nord  fjord  and  its  near-by  glacial  lakes  —  The  Geiranger 
fjord  and  the  "  Seven  Sisters  "  —  Hellesylt  and  the  Norangs- 
dal  —  Marok  —  Molde  and  the  Romsdal  —  The  fjords  north 
of  the  Trondhjem  basin. 

TEN  or  a  dozen  great  arms  of  the  sea,  from 
fifty  to  one  hundred  miles  in  length  and  from 
a  few  yards  to  several  miles  in  width,  penetrate 
into  the  heart  of  the  Scandinavian  peninsula. 
These  deep  drowned  valleys,  with  sheer  preci- 
pices often  more  than  two  thousand  feet  high, 
are  the  fjords  of  Norway,  more  numerous  and 
picturesque  in  this  country  than  in  any  other 
part  of  the  world.  Branch  fjords  strike  out 
right  and  left  from  the  main  ones,  much  as  the 
fingers  radiate  from  the  hand.  The  fjords  are 
of  extraordinary  depth,  and  they  are  generally 
deepest  when  farthest  from  the  sea.  Steep 
mountain  walls  rise  from  either  side  of  their 

190 


NATIONAL,   COSTUME    AND    INDUSTRY. 


Fjords  of  the  West  Coast         191 

banks;  the  lower  edges  are  fringed  with  pine, 
birch,  and  alder;  the  summits  are  often  covered 
with  perpetual  snow,  and  the  towering  moun- 
tains in  the  foreground  are  reflected  sharp  and 
clear  in  the  fjord's  depths.  Waterfalls  burst 
from  the  ice-fields  above  and  beyond  the  cliffs ; 
and,  seen  from  the  fjords  below,  they  look  like 
bands  of  silver.  When  the  clouds  hang  low, 
and  the  perpendicular  cliffs  are  only  partially 
disclosed,  the  waterfalls  seem  to  drop  from  the 
sky. 

These  deep  water  ravines  have  marked  indi- 
viduality, in  spite  of  their  common  causal  ori- 
gin—  the  lateral  pressure  of  great  masses  of 
inland  ice  during  the  glacial  periods.  The  bot- 
toms of  the  fjords  are  U-shaped,  the  walls  be- 
low the  water  line  converging,  although  they 
often  have  depths  from  2,500  to  4,000  feet. 
There  is  usually  a  small  fertile  valley  watered 
by  a  glacial  stream  at  the  head  of  the  fjord; 
and,  on  its  well-nigh  perpendicular  sides,  are 
many  diminutive  farmsteads  placed  like  eagle's 
nests  on  its  cliffs  and  in  its  crevices. 

Since  the  discovery  of  the  fjords  of  Norway 
by  the  tourist  agencies,  they  have  been  an- 
nually visited  by  thousands  of  American  and 
European  travellers,  but  it  is  keenly  to  be  re- 


192  In  Viking  Land 

gretted  that  these  vulgar  tourists,  as  Mr.  Bus- 
kin once  characterized  them,  have  been  per- 
mitted to  deface  these  splendid  mountain  walls 
with  the  paint-pot.  The  greedy  advertiser  has 
not  yet  invaded  these  haunts;  but  the  silly 
tourists  have  left  behind  the  names  of  their 
yachts  and  steamers  and  the  dates  of  their 
visits  in  bold  and  ugly  inscriptions,  which  are 
veritable  eye-sores.  It  is  clearly  to  be  hoped 
that  the  Norwegian  government,  or  some  other 
properly  constituted  authority,  will  put  a  stop 
to  this  silly  and  vulgar  practice. 

From  Bayard  Taylor  down  to  the  poetaster 
of  the  past  season  the  rhapsodists  have  painted 
so  often  and  so  fully  the  beauty  of  the  fjords 
that  one  who  attempts  to  describe  them  anew 
finds  his  sketch  necessarily  repetitious.  The 
pen-picture  by  Miss  Hervey,  an  American  trav- 
eller, does  not  seem  to  the  present  writer  over- 
done: "  Grand  old  hills  rise  on  either  side  of 
the  opaline  fjord,  their  tops  capped  with  fields 
of  eternal  snow,  while  at  their  feet  nestle  little 
hamlets  where  red-tiled  roofs  stand  out  sharply 
against  a  background  of  sombre  firs.  Mountain 
streams  galore;  some  like  beams  of  sunlight 
sparkle  down  toward  the  glittering  fjord ;  some 
like  ravelled  clouds,  seem  only  an  extension  of 


Fjords  of  the  West  Coast         193 

the  mighty  glaciers  far  up  in  the  sky;  and 
some,  like  mad  rivers  jumping  and  roaring, 
plunge  down  steep,  serrated  precipices,  their 
devious  paths  being  marked  by  lines  of  vivid 
verdure. ' ' 

The  Hardanger  fjord  is  the  most  southernly 
and  the  finest  of  the  west  coast  fjords.  It  is 
approached  by  the  steamer  yachts  from  Ber- 
gen through  the  Bjorne  fjord,  thence  in  and 
out  winding  bays  and  round  high  promontories, 
and  past  numerous  islands  to  the  Mauranger 
fjord,  with  its  wealth  of  peaks,  snow-fields, 
glaciers  and  waterfalls.  The  steamer  yacht 
seems  to  steer  straight  for  the  towering  hills, 
when  lo,  without  an  apparent  change  of  course, 
you  enter  the  Sor  fjord,  the  southern  and  most 
beautiful  arm  of  the  inner  Hardanger.  The 
1  *  wondrous  beautiful  Hardanger  "  —  "  det 
underdejlige  Hardanger  "  —  as  Wergeland  de- 
scribed it,  while  less  large  than  the  Sogne  and 
some  of  the  more  northernly  fjords,  is  un- 
doubtedly the  most  lovely  of  them  all.  Its 
foaming  fosses,  glistening  glaciers,  and  ice- 
fields, verdant  farmsteads,  and  picturesquely 
attired  natives  make  a  picture  that  is  not  soon 
forgotten. 

At  the  head  of  the  fjord  is  the  quaint  village 


194  In  Viking  Land 

of  Odde,  with  its  square  log  houses  of  primitive 
form  with  weather  boards  on  the  outside  and 
roofs  of  birch  bark  and  turf,  upon  which 
masses  of  wild  flowers  and  shrubs  find  root  and 
flourish.  Some  of  the  houses  are  painted  red, 
white  and  yellow,  in  accordance  with  the  taste 
of  the  owner,  thus  adding  colour  to  an  already 
highly  coloured  landscape.  One  sees  more 
peasant  costumes  in  the  Hardanger  than  else- 
where in  the  country.  The  dress  of  the  Har- 
danger women  is  likewise  radiant  with  colour. 
The  young  women  wear  bright  red  or  green 
bodices,  very  much  cut  away  behind  at  the 
arms,  leaving  only  a  narrow  strip  of  material 
between  the  shoulders;  the  breast-plate  of  the 
bodice  is  heavily  beaded;  the  sleeves  are  of 
white  linen  or  cotton ;  the  skirt  is  of  plain  blue 
or  black,  bordered  with  bright  velvet;  and  a 
belt  of  beads,  with  a  clasp  of  old  silver  filigree 
work,  is  worn  at  the  waist.  The  hair  of  the 
girls  is  worn  down  the  back  in  two  long  braids, 
but  the  matrons  wear  winged  head-dresses  of 
cambric  rolled  over  a  wooden  frame  and  fas- 
tened closely  about  the  head.  It  flares  broadly 
at  the  sides  and  hangs  down  the  back  in  a  long 
point. 

Some  of  the  finest  waterfalls  in  Norway  are 


Fjords  of  the  West  Coast         195 

in  the  vicinity  of  Odde.  Up  the  ravine  which 
is  traversed  by  the  Telemarken  road  is  the 
Lotefos  and  the  Skarsfos  which  unite  to  form 
the  Espelandsfos,  probably  the  most  beautiful 
mountain  waterfall  in  the  world;  and  in  the 
valley  of  Skjaegge  is  the  superb  SkaejaBggedals- 
fos,  a  waterfall  five  hundred  and  fifty  feet  high. 
Near  the  Eid  fjord,  another  finger  of  the  Har- 
danger,  is  the  roaring  Voringsfos,  which 
plunges  in  a  single  leap  five  hundred  and 
twenty  feet,  into  a  narrow  basin  enclosed  on 
three  sides  by  perpendicular  walls.  Besides 
the  single  leap,  there  is  a  series  of  cascades, 
which  makes  the  sum  total  fall  2,225  feet.  But 
its  beauty  lies  quite  as  much  in  the  dense  col- 
umn of  its  spray  as  in  its  height.  The  Folge- 
fond  ice-field,  with  its  numerous  glacier-off- 
shoots, also  borders  the  Hardanger.  Besides 
the  Sor  and  Eid  fingers  of  the  Hardanger,  the 
two  largest,  there  are  three  small  fingers,  and 
upon  one  of  these  —  the  Graven  fjord  —  is  situ- 
ated the  unassuming  but  busy  little  town  of 
Eide,  which,  like  Odde,  has  a  background  of 
superb  scenery. 

The  Sogne  fjord  is  the  largest  in  the  world. 
Its  length  is  one  hundred  and  thirty-six  miles 
and  its  depth  at  places  more  than  four  thou- 


196  In  Viking  Land 

sand  feet.  It  has  more  than  a  dozen  branches ; 
but,  to  except  the  Nsero,  they  do  not  compare 
in  scenic  interest  with  the  fingers  of  some  of 
the  smaller  fjords.  At  its  entrance  the  Sogne 
is  wide  and  without  character,  but  the  channel 
gradually  narrows  and  the  scenery  grows 
wilder.  The  rugged  mountains  enclosing  it 
are  almost  entirely  destitute  of  vegetation,  due 
in  part  to  the  fact  that  the  cliffs  are  composed 
of  crumbling  rocks  which  are  constantly  loosen- 
ing. This  prevents  vegetation  from  getting  a 
start.  There  are  a  few  farmsteads  on  the  nar- 
row strips  of  the  barren  shores,  but  they  are 
protected  by  overhanging  rocks.  A  few  stunted 
and  scraggy  firs  bury  their  gnarled  roots  deep 
into  the  fissures  of  the  rent  mountains,  but  for 
the  most  part  the  Sogne  is  one  grand  sterile 
wilderness.  Even  the  scanty  population  of 
this  somber  fjord  have  worn  faces  and  haggard 
looks.  Yet  it  was  from  the  Sogne  that  most  of 
the  Norsemen  came  during  the  viking  age,  and 
the  Sogne  during  the  period  covered  by  the 
sagas  —  800  to  1200  A.  D.  —  was  the  seat  of 
the  most  powerful  Norse  families. 

If  the  Sogne  seems  darkened  by  nature's 
frown,  surely  the  Naero,  one  of  her  branches, 
has  been  blessed  with  her  smile;  for  the  Naero 


Fjords  of  the  West  Coast         197 

is  a  veritable  gem.  It  is  wild  and  desolate  and 
no  farmsteads  fringe  its  shores,  for  the  very 
good  reason  that  its  walls,  for  thousands  of 
feet  above  and  below  the  water-line,  are  verti- 
cal. The  bold  outlines  of  the  cliffs  as  they  cast 
their  shadows  on  the  unruffled  surface  of  the 
Naero,  the  foaming  fosses  that  tumble  down 
from  the  tiers  of  empurpled  mountains,  and  the 
wonderful  shadows  that  bathe  the  cliffs  in  pur- 
ple, gray,  and  brown  combine  to  make  this  little 
fjord  one  of  abiding  interest.  At  Styve  the 
channel  of  the  Naero  contracts  to  a  defile  two 
hundred  yards  broad.  From  this  point  to 
Gudvangen  it  is  completely  frozen  over  in  win- 
ter and  serves  as  a  highway  for  sledge  traffic. 
The  Nsero  is  overlooked  by  the  massive  peaks 
of  Steganasse  which  are  snow-clad  throughout 
the  year;  and  at  its  head  is  the  wildest  moun- 
tain valley  in  Norway  —  the  Naerb'dal. 

The  Nord  fjord,  to  the  north  of  the  Sogne, 
is  less  than  half  its  length,  but  it  has  as  many 
branches;  and  to  except  the  Naero,  the  scenery 
is  grander  and  more  picturesque.  The  entrance 
is  guarded  by  a  maze  of  islets;  there  are  vast 
ranges  of  snow-capped  mountains  in  the  back- 
ground, and  in  the  foreground  are  wooded  hills 
dotted  with  cultivated  fields.  The  farmsteads 


198  In  Viking  Land 

in  the  Nord  fjord  have  an  air  of  prosperity  that 
recalls  the  Hardanger ;  and  the  waters  of  the 
fjord  reflect  the  elusive  tints  of  the  farms  and 
foliage  —  glittering  blues  where  the  waters  are 
deep  and  translucent,  yellows  and  greens  where 
they  are  shallow.  Costumes,  like  the  land- 
scapes, are  varied  in  colour  and  individual  in 
form.  The  women  wear  close-fitting  red  or 
green  bodices ;  and  the  men  wear  knee-breeches, 
white  stockings,  red  coats  with  high  collars,  and 
tall  stiff  felt  hats. 

There  are  numberless  small  glacial  lakes  in 
the  hollow  of  the  hills  back  of  the  fjord,  three 
of  the  most  beautiful  being  Stryns  vand,  Loen 
vand,  and  Olden  vand.  Loen  vand  is  dominated 
by  majestic  mountains  which  rise  all  about  its 
shores,  and  it  is  fed  by  the  Kjendalsbrae,  a  gla- 
cier that  connects  with  the  Jostedalsbrae,  the 
largest  glacier  in  Europe,  with  an  ice-field  cov- 
ering three  hundred  and  fifty  square  miles. 
The  Stryndal  and  the  Videdal  radiate  from 
Visnaes  and  the  Loendal  from  Loen.  The 
Loendal,  with  its  wealth  of  shrubs,  trees,  and 
green  meadows,  is  dominated  by  the  lofty 
Skaala  mountain,  6,356  feet  above  sea-level; 
and  it  contains  numerous  waterfalls,  which, 
seen  at  a  distance  above  a  screen  of  firs,  ap- 


THE    SEVEN    SISTERS. 


Fjords  of  the  West  Coast         199 

pear  like  folds  of  linen  on  a  bleaching  ground. 

In  the  matter  of  picturesque  cliffs  and 
numerous  waterfalls  the  Nord  fjord  is  sur- 
passed by  the  Geiranger.  A.  Heaton  Cooper, 
an  English  artist,  says  of  it :  ' '  We  have  here 
a  blending  of  the  Alpine  splendour  of  Nordland 
with  the  wildness  of  Jotunheim,  the  beauty  of 
Hardanger  and  the  grandeur  of  the  Sogne. 
Whether  we  approach  this  fjord  from  the  land 
side  and  drive  down  the  splendidly  engineered 
road  in  zigzag  windings  to  the  village  of  Marok, 
or  sail  in  from  the  main  Stor  fjord,  we  obtain 
an  equally  vivid  impression  of  Geiranger 's 
beauty  and  grandeur." 

The  Geiranger  fjord  is  about  eleven  miles 
long  and  from  two  hundred  to  four  hundred 
yards  wide.  Its  perpendicular  walls  rise  to 
heights  ranging  from  three  thousand  to  five 
thousand  feet.  Over  these  steep  cliffs  plunge 
many  waterfalls,  and  when  the  tops  are  covered 
with  clouds  they  seem  to  fall  direct  from  the 
sky.  The  series  of  waterfalls  known  as  the 
"  Seven  Sisters  "  is  probably  the  most  beauti- 
ful in  the  fjord.  Seven  silken  streaks  of  white 
fall  from  the  overhanging  cliffs  to  the  fjord 
below.  Just  beyond  the  "  Seven  Sisters  "  is 
the  Gausdalsfos  which,  half  way  down  its  fall, 


200  In  Viking  Land 

is  broken  in  two,  thus  forming  a  double  leap 
into  the  fjord;  and  opposite  are  some  curious 
overhanging  cliffs  whose  profiles  suggest  hu- 
man faces.  Brude  Slur,  or  bridal  veil,  near 
the  "  Seven  Sisters,"  "  descends  as  a  veil  from 
the  sky  line  of  the  high  cliff  and  spreads  its 
streamers  over  the  face  of  the  mountain  wall." 

Perched  on  a  precipitous  cliff  on  the  opposite 
side  of  the  fjord  is  the  Skaggeflaa  farmstead 
which  is  reached  by  a  winding  trail  that  is  al- 
most vertical.  One  point  in  the  trail  is  blocked 
by  an  overhanging  rock  and  has  to  be  scaled 
by  a  ladder.  The  story  goes  that  some  years 
ago  the  occupant  of  this  eagle-nest  farmstead, 
having  imbibed  the  anti-taxation  sentiments  of 
Thoreau,  refused  to  pay  his  share  of  the  local 
levy.  He  made  it  convenient  to  appear  at  the 
fjord's  edge  at  times  when  the  tax-gatherer 
was  not  within  easy  distance.  But  one  day 
when  the  old  man  was  returning  to  his  eyrie, 
he  discovered  that  he  was  being  pursued  by  the 
deputy  sheriff;  and,  increasing  his  steps,  he 
quickly  scaled  the  rock  and  pulled  the  ladder 
after  him,  leaving  the  irate  representative  of 
the  law  to  ponder  over  the  pros  and  cons  of 
taxation. 

Hellesylt  is  a  beautiful  village  on  the  Gei- 


THE   NORANGSDAL. 


Fjords  of  the  West  Coast        201 

ranger  fjord  at  the  foot  of  a  mountain,  steep 
and  rugged,  and  completely  surrounded  by 
water.  There  is  no  apparent  outlet;  and,  but 
for  knowledge  to  the  contrary,  one  might  well 
suppose  the  village  to  be  located  on  a  mountain 
lake.  There  are  numerous  tiny  farms  on  the 
steep  mountain  sides,  but  the  farmers  have  to 
go  barefooted  or  wear  soft  soled-shoes  to  ac- 
commodate their  feet  to  the  inequalities  of  the 
soil;  and  children  and  animals  have  to  be 
tethered  to  the  trees  and  rocks  to  prevent  them 
from  falling  over.  When  death  comes  during 
the  winter  months  the  bodies  have  to  be  kept 
until  spring.  The  Norangsdal,  which  connects 
Hellesylt  with  Oie,  on  the  Norangs  fjord,  is 
probably  the  wildest  and  grandest  small  moun- 
tain valley  in  Norway.  It  contains  a  half  dozen 
small  glacial  lakes,  is  fringed  with  mountain 
saeters,  and  the  bottom  of  the  valley  is  covered 
with  avalanche  snow  throughout  the  summer. 
Oie,  at  the  western  terminus  of  the  Norangsdal, 
is  dominated  by  the  Slogen  and  a  number  of 
other  robust  mountain  peaks. 

Marok  is  at  the  head  of  the  Geiranger  fjord 
and  the  western  terminus  of  one  of  the  cross- 
country mountain  routes  through  the  Gud- 
bransdal  and  Aalsad  over  the  Grotlid  road, 


202  In  Viking  Land 

which  is  one  of  the  finest  bits  of  highway  engi- 
neering in  Europe.  The  road  descends  in  zig- 
zag fashion  over  wild  torrents  and  splendid 
waterfalls  and  cascades,  and  makes  a  drop  of 
more  than  three  thousand  feet  in  ten  miles. 
The  environs  of  Marok,  and  the  little  valleys 
which  lead  into  the  Geiranger  fjord,  are  highly 
cultivated,  in  spite  of  the  paucity  of  land  avail- 
able for  agricultural  purposes.  Little  patches 
of  ground  between  the  rocks  are  mown  with 
small  scythes  used  with  one  hand.  Cattle 
breeding  is  also  an  important  industry  in  the 
Geiranger.  In  the  Vesteraasdal,  a  valley 
branching  to  the  north  from  the  Geiranger 
basin,  is  the  magnificent  waterfall,  the  Stors- 
saeterfos. 

The  Molde  fjord  to  the  north  is  larger  but 
less  picturesque  than  the  Geiranger  or  the 
Nord.  At  its  entrance  is  the  pleasantly  situ- 
ated town  of  Molde  with  its  superb  background 
of  forest-clad  hills  and  its  foreground  of 
cherry,  horse-chestnut,  lime,  and  ash  trees,  and 
its  wealth  of  roses,  honeysuckles,  and  other 
cultivated  plants.  In  spite  of  the  fact  that 
Molde  is  in  the  latitude  of  the  northern  limits 
of  the  frozen  tundra  plains  of  the  continent  of 
North  America,  its  climate  is  mild  and  its  vege- 


Fjords  of  the  West  Coast        203 

tation  surprisingly  luxuriant.  The  church  at 
Molde  contains  Axel  Ender's  well-known  paint- 
ing representing  the  women  at  the  sepulchre  of 
Christ.  The  beautiful  Romsdal  terminates  at 
Veblungsnaes  on  the  Eomsdals  fjord,  one  of  the 
branches  of  the  Molde. 

Beyond  Molde  are  the  Trondhjem,  Vest, 
Trold,  Porsanger,  and  Veranger  fjords.  Of 
the  Vest  fjord  Bjornson  writes :  ' '  When  you 
at  last  enter  the  Vest  fjord,  with  the  lofty 
mountains  of  Lofoten  islands  rising  out  of  the 
sea  on  one  side  and  the  mighty  mountain 
ranges  of  the  mainland  on  the  other,  you  feel 
as  if  you  were  sailing  right  into  the  grandest 
fairy  tales  of  the  people,  or  into  the  myths 
about  the  eternal  fight  between  the  Ases  and 
the  Jotuns,  the  Vanirs  and  the  Gnomes,  es- 
pecially when  the  glow  of  the  midnight  sun 
suffuses  with  infinite  splendour  those  parts  of 
the  mountains  upon  which  it  rests,  and  leaves 
the  other  parts  in  an  inexpressible  chill.'*  The 
Trold  fjord  is  enclosed  by  perpendicular  rocks 
which  again  enclose  snow-filled  gorges ;  and  the 
snowy  Troldtinder,  a  group  of  peaks  covered 
with  eternal  snow,  overlooks  the  fjord.  On 
one  side  of  the  Troldtinder  is  the  Troldvand, 


204  In  Viking  Land 

a  mountain  lake  eight  hundred  feet  above  sea- 
level  and  frozen  over  throughout  the  year.  The 
mountains  rise  vertically  from  the  lake's  banks 
to  the  height  of  3,200  feet. 


LOEN    ON    THE    NORD    FJORD. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

FJELDS     AND     MOUNTAIN     VALLEYS 

The  southern  plateau  and  its  mountains  and  mountain  val- 
leys —  The  Saetersdal  —  Telemarken  and  its  picturesque 
costumes  —  Bergen  to  Vossevangen  —  The  Finneloft  — 
Over  Stalheim  —  The  Naerodal  —  Laerdalsoren  —  The  Valders 
route  —  Husum  and  the  old  timber  church  at  Borgund  — 
The  descent  from  Nystuen  to  Skogstad  —  Fagernaes  and 
Lake  Spirillen  —  The  mountain  peaks  and  waterfalls  of  the 
Romsdal  —  The  Gudbransdal. 

IN  a  preceding  chapter  on  the  geography  of 
Scandinavia  attention  was  called  to  the  fact 
that  Norway  was  a  country  of  mountains  and 
plateaus,  with  short  abrupt  slopes  to  the  fjords 
on  the  west,  and  long  gradual  slopes  to  the 
woodlands  and  farmlands  on  the  east.  The 
Doverfjeld  and  the  Langfjeld  form  the  basis  of 
the  great  plateaus  of  central  and  southern  Nor- 
way. Many  ranges,  however,  radiate  from  the 
Langfjeld.  The  summits  of  the  plateaus  and 
ridges  are  covered  with  snow  throughout  the 
year;  but  between  the  transverse  ridges  are 
narrow  valleys  that  are  both  fertile  and  pic- 
turesque. Telemarken,  Numedal,  Hallingdal, 

205 


206  In  Viking  Land 

the  Valders,  and  Gudbransdal  are  on  the  east- 
ern slope  of  the  primary  highland,  the  Eoms- 
dal  on  the  west,  and  Saetersdal  on  the  south. 
There  are  small  strips  of  fertile  land  at  the 
bottoms  of  the  valleys,  and  occasional  patches 
on  the  sides  of  the  mountains  where  the  soil 
has  settled  in  the  ledges.  These  mountain  val- 
leys preserve  the  customs,  dress,  and  habits  of 
the  Norse  people  of  by-gone  generations. 

The  most  southernly  of  the  mountain  valleys 
of  Norway  is  the  Saetersdal,  drained  by  the 
Otteraa  river.  It  extends  from  Bredvik  to 
Christiansand,  a  distance  of  one  hundred  and 
forty-three  miles.  Its  scenery  is  not  only  beau- 
tiful, but  its  inhabitants,  tall  and  strongly  built 
people,  continue  to  wear  the  picturesque  cos- 
tume of  Gramle  Norge.  The  curious  dress  of 
the  Saetersdal  women,  which  comes  close  up 
under  the  arm  pits,  had  its  origin  in  a  monkish 
fanaticism  of  the  middle  ages,  which  did  not 
permit  the  female  to  display  her  form.  There 
is  a  narrow  gauge  railway  up  the  valley  as  far 
as  the  Byglands  fjord  —  really  a  mountain  lake 
rather  than  a  fjord  —  and  from  thence  to 
Langeid  the  tourist  is  transported  for  a  dis- 
tance of  twenty-two  miles  by  a  lake  steamer. 
The  balance  of  the  distance  must  be  covered 


Fjelds  and  Mountain  Valleys      207 

with  a  carriole  or  a  stolkjaerre.  From  Flate- 
land  in  the  upper  Ssetersdal  the  traveller  can 
cross  the  mountain  pass  to  Dalen  and  join  the 
Telemarken  route  from  Skien  to  Odde,  or  take 
the  wild  but  fatiguing  mountain  road  over  the 
snow-fields  from  Bredvik  to  the  Suldalsvand. 

The  Telemarken  route  from  Skien  to  the 
Hardanger  fjord,  over  the  Haukelif jeld,  shares 
with  the  Valders  the  primacy  in  the  matter  of 
the  scenic  interest  among  the  cross-country 
mountain  routes  of  Norway.  The  Skien- 
Nordsjo-Bandak  canal,  in  the  valley,  is  one  of 
many  evidences  of  the  ingenuity  and  skill  of 
Norwegian  engineers.  By  the  aid  of  seventy 
locks  there  is  a  continuous  waterway  from  the 
sea  at  Skien  to  the  heart  of  the  mountains  at 
Dalen.  Frequent  waterfalls  have  made  it  nec- 
essary to  hew  the  canal  from  solid  rocks.  At 
the  Vrangfos,  where  the  cascade  is  seventy- 
five  feet  high,  six  locks  were  required  to  over- 
come the  grade.  The  road  over  the  Haukeli- 
fjeld,  at  an  elevation  of  3,085  feet,  to  Kodal, 
and  thence  across  the  Seljestad  ravine  and 
down  to  Odde,  is  another  evidence  of  the  tri- 
umph of  engineering  science  in  Norway. 

In  Telemarken,  as  in  the  Hardanger,  the  peo- 
ple continue  to  wear  the  picturesque  national 


208  In  Viking  Land 

dress.  The  men  wear  a  short  military-cut 
jacket  ornamented  with  silver  lace  and  buttons, 
dark-coloured  breeches  seamed  with  red,  red 
caps,  and  woollen  stockings,  the  tops  of  which 
are  brilliantly  embroidered.  The  broad  shoul- 
ders and  massive  frames  of  the  Telemarken 
women  suggest  their  kinship  with  the  Amazons 
of  olden  times.  They  wear  dark  skirts,  the 
hems  gaily  trimmed  with  red  or  yellow  worsted 
lace,  and  the  skirts  reach  only  to  the  knees,  dis- 
playing to  full  advantage  their  ponderous 
pedal  extremities ;  their  shoes  have  pointed  and 
turned  up  toes,  and  the  head-dress  is  a  coloured 
handkerchief,  the  ends  of  which  hang  down  the 
back.  Both  men  and  women  wear  large 
brooches  and  silver  shoe-buckles. 

The  route  from  Bergen  to  Christiania, 
through  the  Valders  or  the  Hallingdal,  com- 
bines rail,  steamer,  and  carriage  travel,  and 
offers  a  larger  combination  of  scenic  and  hu- 
man interest  than  any  of  the  other  trans-Scan- 
dinavian routes.  The  sixty-seven  miles  between 
Bergen  and  Vossevangen  is  covered  by  the  new 
railway  which  is  eventually  to  connect  the  cap- 
ital with  the  metropolis  of  the  west  coast.  At 
many  points  the  road  is  cut  from  the  solid 


Fjelds  and  Mountain  Valleys      209 

rock,  and  one-tenth  of  the  entire  distance  is 
occupied  with  tunnels. 

In  any  country  but  Norway  Vossevangen 
would  be  considered  a  beautiful  town ;  but  here, 
where  nature  has  been  so  lavish  in  her  favours, 
it  takes  an  unusual  combination  of  natural 
forms  and  forces  to  elicit  the  passing  interest 
of  the  traveller.  An  indifferent  mountain  lake, 
an  agreeable  climate,  some  fertile  farms,  one 
of  the  best  hostelries  in  Norway  —  Fleischer's 
Hotel  —  and  an  exceptionally  well-preserved 
timber  farmhouse  dating  from  the  thirteenth 
century  constitute  the  chief  assets  of  Voss. 
The  timber  house,  the  Finneloft,  a  two-storied 
building  in  the  shape  of  a  bloch-house,  is  one 
of  the  most  interesting  specimens  of  mediaeval 
domestic  architecture  in  Norway.  There  is  no 
inside  staircase ;  but  as  in  all  ancient  Norse 
farmhouses,  the  approach  to  the  upper  part  is 
from  without. 

The  highway  from  Vossevangen  to  Gudvan- 
gen  is  along  the  Voss  river  which  rushes 
through  deep  clefts  in  the  rocks  and  forms 
many  thundering  cascades.  Beyond  Tvinde 
the  gorge  is  so  narrow  and  its  walls  so  vertical 
that  the  road  is  hewn  from  the  solid  rocks, 
while  beneath  the  highway  roars  the  savage 


210  In  Viking  Land 

river.  There  is  an  ascent  of  more  than  a  thou- 
sand feet  in  the  drive  from  Voss  to  the  summit 
at  Stalheim,  which  is  1,120  feet  above  the  level 
of  the  sea.  The  Stalheims-Klev  is  a  huge  rock 
eight  hundred  feet  high  which  forms  the  head 
of  the  picturesque  Naerodal.  The  view  from 
Stalheim  is  probably  the  finest  in  Norway; 
and,  if  its  hotel  were  as  comfortable  and  as  well 
managed  as  most  of  the  other  mountain  inns, 
it  would  be  an  ideal  spot  for  a  summer's  out- 
ing.  To  the  right  of  Stalheim  is  the  Kaldaf  jeld 
(4,265  feet),  a  huge  mass  of  light  gray  syenite 
with  its  summit  snow-capped;  to  the  left  the 
Jordalsnut  (3,620  feet),  a  conical  peak  barren 
of  verdure  with  its  steep  sides  deeply  furrowed 
by  the  action  of  avalanches ;  in  the  background 
three  splendid  waterfalls  —  the  Stalheimsfos, 
the  Sivlefos,  and  the  Kilefos;  and  in  the  deep 
canon  below  the  sombre  but  superb  Naerodal. 

In  descending  from  Stalheim  to  Gudvangen 
the  road  winds  down  the  precipitous  rock  in 
corkscrew  fashion,  backwards  and  forwards 
sixteen  times,  the  last  bend  at  the  foot  being 
almost  directly  under  the  first  at  the  summit. 
Here  begins  the  tiny  valley  that  leads  into  the 
Naero  fjord.  The  Naerodal  is  a  truly  wonderful 
gorge,  with  its  sides  more  than  five  thousand 


Fjelds  and  Mountain  Valleys      211 

feet  high,  the  summits  covered  with  eternal 
snows,  and  the  walls  bleached  and  seared  by 
time  and  overhung  by  a  hundred  delicate  water- 
falls. The  sublimity  of  the  Nserodal  is  simply 
overpowering.  Mrs.  Olivia  M.  Stone,  an  Eng- 
lish woman,  has  well  expressed  the  mental  re- 
actions of  the  writer.  ' '  One  has  a  longing  de- 
sire to  get  above  those  awful  cliffs  —  to  go 
anywhere,  do  anything,  only  to  escape  from  the 
oppression  that  seems  to  be  crushing  down 
one's  mental  and  physical  powers.  It  would 
be  possible  to  be  goaded  to  madness  by  these 
stern,  silent,  unscalable  walls,  whose  only 
answer  to  a  wild  cry  for  freedom,  wrung  from 
despairing  lips,  would  be  the  pitiless,  mock- 
ing echo." 

The  Naerodal  is  precisely  like  the  fjords  in 
structure,  and  it  may  have  been  filled  with 
water  at  one  time.  It  is  seven  miles  long  and 
a  few  hundred  yards  wide  and  is  dotted  with 
farmsteads  of  the  pigmy  sort.  At  its  fjord-end 
is  Gndvangen,  so  shut  in  by  huge  mountains 
that  it  gets  the  direct  rays  of  the  sun  for  only 
a  third  of  the  year.  During  the  winter  the  sun 
lights  up  the  tops  of  the  mountains  at  midday, 
but  its  rays  da  not  strike  directly  the  bottom 
of  the  valley.  The  over- water  journey  between 


212  In  Viking  Land 

Gudvangen  and  Laerdalsoren  is  made  by  means 
of  small  fjord  steamers. 

Laerdalsoren,  the  western  terminus  of  the 
route  from  Christiania  through  the  Valders, 
lies  at  the  extreme  end  of  a  branch  of  the 
Sogne  fjord.  It  is  so  entirely  enclosed  by  bare 
rocky  mountains  that  the  direct  rays  of  the  sun 
do  not  reach  the  village  more  than  five  out  of 
the  twelve  months  of  the  year.  It  has  one  long 
winding  street  of  timber  houses,  with  outside 
wooden  staircases,  and  roofs  of  birch  bark  and 
turf  which  are  luxuriant  with  vegetation. 

It  is  a  drive  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles 
from  Laerdalsoren  to  Sorum  over  the  Fillef jeld. 
Leaving  Laerdal  the  highway  follows  a  broad 
flat  valley,  occupied  by  impoverished  farm- 
steads, as  far  as  Blaaflaten.  Here  it  begins  to 
narrow ;  and  at  Husum,  it  enters  a  wild  ravine, 
where  the  road  is  entirely  hewn  from  the  cliffs, 
at  the  base  of  which  the  Laera  river  rushes 
through  a  narrow  cascaded  channel. 

Beyond  Husum  is  the  Borgund  church,  dat- 
ing from  the  twelfth  century  and  one  of  the 
choice  national  monuments  of  Norway.  It  is 
unexpectedly  small,  entirely  built  of  wood,  and 
the  roof  is  constructed  in  six  tiers,  each  finished 
off  with  a  cross  or  a  rudely  carved  dragon's 


THE    SIVLEFOS    IN   THE    N^ERODAL. 


Fjelds  and  Mountain  Valleys     213 

head.  The  building  is  surrounded  on  the  out- 
side by  a  roofed  veranda  which  extends  three 
feet  beyond  the  actual  walls  of  the  church,  thus 
increasing  its  apparent  size.  The  complete 
length  of  the  church,  from  the  west  door  to  the 
eastern  extremity  of  the  chancel,  is  only  thirty- 
nine  feet.  The  nave  is  twenty-three  feet  long 
and  nearly  twenty  feet  wide.  It  is  separated 
from  the  side  aisles  by  twelve  large  pillars, 
each  formed  from  a  single  pine  tree.  The  body 
of  the  church  inside  the  pillars  measures  about 
eleven  by  sixteen  feet,  thus  furnishing  space 
for  not  more  than  forty  worshippers  at  any 
one  time.  As  glass  was  unknown  in  Norway 
in  the  twelfth  century,  the  light  is  admitted  by 
small  openings  in  the  walls,  but  the  church  is 
very  dark  when  the  doors  are  closed.  A  little 
carving,  of  the  Celtic  tracery  sort,  is  found 
about  the  doors;  also  some  runic  inscriptions, 
which  give  a  clue  to  the  date  of  its  construc- 
tion. The  belfry,  a  huge  wedge-shaped  struc- 
ture of  more  recent  date,  stands  near  the 
church. 

There  is  a  relatively  broad  intervale  at  Bor- 
gund ;  but  beyond  Efeg  the  valley  narrows  and 
the  scenery  becomes  grander,  and  higher  up  in 
the  mountains  habitations,  to  except  a  few  scat- 


214  In  Viking  Land 

tered  saeters,  cease  to  exist.  Maristuen,  founded 
as  an  ecclesiastical  hospice  in  the  year  1300, 
is  on  a  bare  and  bleak  moorland,  almost  desti- 
tute of  trees  and  other  vegetation,  at  an  eleva- 
tion of  2,635  feet ;  and  the  highest  elevation  on 
the  Valders  route  is  reached  at  Nystuen,  3,295 
feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  Nystuen  is  on 
the  banks  of  a  glacial  lake  and  surrounded  by 
extensive  snow-fields.  This  is  a  favourite  pas- 
ture region  for  the  Lapps;  and,  during  the 
short  summer,  several  thousand  reindeer  are 
pastured  in  this  vicinity. 

The  descent  from  Nystuen  to  Skogstad 
amounts  to  almost  a  plunge,  although  the  pub- 
lic highway  has  been  admirably  adapted  to  the 
freaks  of  the  crazy  Baegna  river  which  it  fol- 
lows. The  higher  limit  of  cone-bearing  trees 
is  reached  at  Skogstad,  and  from  this  point xto 
Fagernaes  the  route  leads  through  magnificent 
pine  forests.  Fagernaes  is  charmingly  located 
in  the  heart  of  dense  pine-covered  mountains; 
it  has  lovely  green  meadows  filled  with  wild 
flowers ;  there  are  numerous  lakelets  whose  sur- 
faces are  covered  with  pond  lilies;  it  has  an 
admirably  kept  hotel;  but  the  mosquitos  of 
Fagernaes  simply  baffle  description.  The  Val- 
ders railway  is  now  completed  as  far  as  Fager- 


Fjelds  and  Mountain  Valleys      215 

naes,  but  most  tourists  will  prefer  to  continue 
the  overland  highway  as  far  as  Sorum  at  the 
head  of  Lake  Spirillen. 

Leaving  Fagernses  the  highway  for  twelve 
miles  follows  the  shores  of  the  beautiful 
Strande  fjord,  really  a  lake  formed  by  the 
widening  and  deepening  of  the  Baegna  river. 
From  Freydenlund  to  Fjeldheim  the  road  is 
again  hewn  from  the  rocky  mountainside  and 
it  affords  some  magnificent  views  of  the  snow- 
fields  of  Jotunheim,  but  the  valley  widens 
again  as  Sorum  is  approached.  From  Sorum 
the  tourist  goes  by  steamer  through  the  navi- 
gable channel  of  the  Baegna  river  and  Lake 
Spirillen,  a  beautiful  little  sheet  of  water  fif- 
teen miles  long  and  bordered  with  prosperous 
little  farms  and  pine-clad  mountains.  From 
Heen,  at  the  foot  of  the  lake,  to  Christiania, 
the  journey  is  made  by  railway. 

The  cross-country  trip  by  the  Valders  can 
be  made  with  comfort  in  a  week,  and  it  gives 
the  tourist  an  excellent  idea  of  the  mountain- 
ous parts  of  Norway  and  the  isolated  life  of 
the  people.  Many  quaint  old  customs  and  cos- 
tumes persist  in  the  Valders.  The  dress  of  the 
men  and  boys  is  even  more  quaint  than  in  other 
parts  of  the  country.  They  wear  short  Eton 


216  In  Viking  Land 

jackets  made  of  black  or  dark  cloth;  trousers 
that  come  to  the  arm-pits  but  scarcely  reach  to 
the  ankles ;  high  vests  that  button  quite  to  the 
throat,  and  mufflers  that  include  all  the  pri- 
mary and  most  of  the  secondary  and  tertiary 
colours. 

One  who  has  crossed  Norway  by  the  Valders 
route  may  well  agree  with  Mrs.  Olivia  M.  Stone 
that  it  is  one  continuous  gallery  of  pictures: 
"  Sometimes  one  looks  at  it  smiling,  and  again 
frowning;  sometimes  wild,  weird  and  terrible, 
and  again  one  sees  a  paradise  of  rest.  But  in 
none  of  its  phases  is  there  anything  to  jar  — 
everything  seems  in  keeping  —  no  inharmoni- 
ous civilization  suddenly  transports  one  to 
every-day  wear  and  tear.  The  illusion  that  the 
world  is  jogging  —  that  there  is  plenty  of  time 
for  everything,  that  human  nature  is  not  so 
bad  as  people  make  out,  and  that  everybody  is 
not  breathless  —  is  kept  up  from  the  time  one 
sets  foot  on  Norway  until  one  reluctantly  bids 
it  farewell." 

North  of  the  Valders  is  the  Romsdal,  a  much 
shorter  but  a  more  beautiful  mountain  valley. 
It  is  drained  by  the  Eauma  river,  which  takes 
its  rise  in  the  Lesjeskogen  lake  high  up  in  the 
mountains;  and  from  Stufloten  (2,050  feet 


LAKE    SPIRILLEN. 


THE    ROMSDAL. 


Fjelds  and  Mountain  Valleys      217 

above  the  sea)  to  Veblungsnaes,  where  it  emp- 
ties into  the  fjord,  a  distance  of  thirty-seven 
miles,  it  makes  an  abrupt  descent  between  pre- 
cipitous mountain  walls.  In  its  upper  course 
are  numerous  deep  cauldrons  which  have  been 
formed  by  the  erosive  action  of  stones  whirled 
round  by  eddies  in  the  bed  of  the  river. 

The  Romsdal  is  abundantly  punctuated  with 
beautiful  waterfalls.  The  Slettafos  is  in  its 
upper  course ;  here  the  rocks  form  a  deep  and 
narrow  gorge  about  fifty  feet  wide  and  eight 
hundred  feet  long.  Down  this  channel,  with 
compressed  fury,  rushes  the  Eauma  with  a 
roar  that  is  deafening,  suggesting  the  words 
of  Edmund  Burke  that '  *  the  noise  of  vast  cata- 
racts awake  a  great  and  awful  sensation  in  the 
mind,  though  we  can  observe  no  nicety  or  arti- 
fice in  those  sorts  of  music."  Further  down 
the  valley,  near  Ormeim,  is  the  Vaermofos,  an- 
other fine  waterfall,  formed  by  a  tributary 
river  that  sweeps  diagonally  down  cliffs  more 
than  a  thousand  feet  high  to  join  the  Rauma. 

The  most  beautiful  part  of  the  Romsdal, 
however,  is  the  ten  miles  from  Horgheim  to 
Veblungsnaes.  The  gorge  narrows  and  the 
river  is  flanked  on  both  sides  by  vertical  moun- 
tain ridges  and  peaks.  On  the  east  side  of  the 


218  In  Viking  Land 

valley  rise  the  picturesque  Vengetinder  (5,960 
feet) ;  and,  dominating  the  whole  valley,  the 
huge  dome  of  the  Bomsdalshorn  (5,100  feet). 
These  mountains  are  the  steepest  in  Europe ; 
and,  although  their  ascent  is  possible,  it  is  dan- 
gerous. On  the  west  side  of  the  valley  rise  the 
Troldtinder  or  witch-pinnacles  (6,010  feet) ; 
and  further  down  the  valley,  the  King,  the 
Sisters,  the  Bishop,  and  other  splendid  peaks. 
As  it  nears  the  mouth  of  the  fjord,  the  Roms- 
dal  widens  a  bit  to  make  room  for  snug  little 
farms  and  forest  parks  of  alder,  ash,  and  birch. 
An  experienced  English  traveller,  Mr.  Herbert 
Maxwell,  says  of  this  valley:  "  If  the  Boms- 
dal  has  any  European  rival  in  stupendous  reck- 
less grandeur,  such  is  not  known  to  me.  Prob- 
ably nowhere  else,  except  in  the  Yosemite  Val- 
ley or  in  the  gorges  of  the  Indus  above  Khalsi 
in  Ladak,  shall  you  find  such  opposing  preci- 
pices of  such  height  so  near  together. ' ' 

The  route  from  the  Eomsdal  to  Christiania 
is  continued  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  plateau 
through  the  fertile  and  prosperous  Gudbrans- 
dal.  The  narrow  strips  of  land  along  its  som- 
bre defiles  are  studiously  cultivated;  and 
perched  on  the  dizzy  mountainsides  like  eagles' 


Fjelds  and  Mountain  Valleys      219 

nests  are  numerous  sseters.  In  the  Gudbrands- 
dal,  as  in  Telemarken  and  the  Valders,  the 
peasants  still  cling  to  the  picturesque  costumes 
of  their  ancestors. 


CHAPTER   XV 

TRONDHJEM:  ITS  SAINT  AND  ITS  CATHEDRAL 

Trondhjem  once  the  residence  of  the  Norse  kings  —  Its  loca- 
tion —  Mediaeval  foundation  —  Olaf  the  Saint  and  his  early 
career  —  His  reign  one  of  the  mile-stones  in  Norwegian  his- 
tory —  His  canonization  and  the  St.  Olaf  cult  —  The  national 
cathedral  —  Selection  of  Trondhjem  as  the  archiepiscopal 
see  —  Progress  of  the  cathedral  during  the  reign  of  Haakon 
Haakonsson  —  Fearful  conflagrations  —  Fate  of  the  cathe- 
dral after  the  reformation  —  Recent  restorations  —  Other 
notable  historic  associations  in  Trondhjem. 

TRONDHJEM,  formerly  Nidaros,  in  latitude 
north  63°  25'  52",  is  the  most  northernly  city  in 
the  world.  It  was  the  site  of  the  first  Christian 
church  in  Norway  and  the  northern  stronghold 
of  the  faith  during  the  middle  ages.  Hither 
flocked  annually,  before  the  Protestant  refor- 
mation, thousands  of  pilgrims  from  all  parts  of 
Europe  to  worship  at  the  shrine  of  Olaf  the 
Saint.  Trondhjem  was  the  seat  of  the  great 
national  cathedral  and  the  residence  of  the  arch- 
bishops; here  the  Norse  kings  were  crowned, 
and  for  many  years  the  city  was  the  chief  seat 
of  the  royal  residence. 


Trondhjem  221 

The  city  to-day  ranks  third  in  commercial 
importance  and  size  and  has  a  population  of 
40,326  inhabitants.  It  still  has  its  cathedral 
and  the  kings  of  Norway  continue  to  be 
crowned  here.  But  it  has  ceased  to  be  the  cap- 
ital of  the  country,  and  in  the  historic  changes 
of  the  last  five  centuries  it  has  been  forced  to 
yield  its  claims  of  priority  to  Christiania  and 
Bergen.  The  city  is  beautifully  situated  on  a 
peninsula  formed  by  the  Trondhjem  fjord  and 
the  Nid  river.  In  spite  of  its  northern  loca- 
tion, its  summer  climate  is  like  that  of  Eng- 
land and  its  winters  similar  to  those  in  Ger- 
many. The  river  is  rarely  frozen  over  and  the 
fjord  never. 

King  Olaf  Trygvesson  founded  a  city  here 
in  996  and  erected  a  royal  residence  and  a 
church  which  he  dedicated  to  St.  Clement. 
During  the  reigns  of  Eric  and  Svend  Haakons- 
son  (1000-1015)  the  city  was  neglected,  but  it 
prospered  greatly  during  the  reign  of  Olaf  the 
Saint  (1016-1030),  and  after  his  death  the  St. 
Olaf  cult  made  Trondhjem  the  largest  and  rich- 
est place  in  the  kingdom  and  gave  rise  to  the 
erection  of  the  cathedral,  fourteen  other 
churches,  and  five  monasteries. 

Olaf  the  Saint  is  one  of  the  commanding  fig- 


222  In  Viking  Land 

ures  in  Norwegian  history.  The  story  of  his 
life,  while  told  with  reasonable  fulness  by  the 
sagas  of  the  Norse  kings,  has  been  so  clouded 
by  the  mythological  mists  which  gathered  about 
his  name  after  his  canonization  by  the  church 
of  Borne,  that  it  is  not  easy  to  separate  the 
realities  of  his  career  from  the  mythological 
and  supernatural.  If  Snorre  Sturalsson,  the 
historian  of  the  period,  is  to  be  relied  upon, 
Olaf  the  Thickset,  as  he  was  know  before  can- 
onization, was  a  supremely  human  individual 
and  he  had  numerous  personal  qualities  not 
commonly  associated  with  the  character  of 
saints. 

As  described  by  Snorre,  Olaf  was  of  mod- 
erate stature,  thick-set,  but  well  built;  he  had 
a  comely  and  prepossessing  look ;  his  face  was 
broad  and  honest;  he  had  quantities  of  beau- 
tiful yellow  hair,  the  brightest  eye  in  the  world, 
and  a  complexion  as  pure  as  snow  and  as  beau- 
tiful as  roses.  He  was  the  son  of  Harald 
Gronske,  who  had  ventured  to  woo  the  haughty 
Sigrid  and  was  burned  to  death  for  his  pre- 
sumption. His  widowed  mother  married  a 
grandson  of  Harald  the  Fair:Haired,  a  man  of 
great  wealth,  prudence,  and  influence,  who 
loved  his  step-son  and  brought  him  up  whole- 


Trondhjem  223 

somely  and  skilfully.  One  Rane  the  Far-Trav- 
elled was  engaged  as  the  tutor  of  little  Olaf, 
and  he  filled  the  lad's  head  with  exploits  and 
adventures  in  distant  countries. 

At  the  early  age  of  twelve  the  nascent  migra- 
tory instinct  had  so  strongly  developed  in  Olaf 
that  it  was  decided  to  fit  him  out  with  a  ship 
and  let  him  seek  his  fortunes  on  foreign  shores 
as  a  viking.  He  cruised  and  fought  in  many 
seas,  plundered  the  coasts  that  he  visited,  and 
amassed  a  great  fortune,  as  was  the  custom  of 
the  vikings.  We  are  told  by  the  scalds  that 
he  was  always  victorious,  sometimes  getting 
out  of  embarrassing  situations  with  miraculous 
dexterity.  He  visited  the  countries  of  western 
and  southern  Europe  in  the  capacity  of  a  rob- 
ber sea-king  until  his  name  became  famous  in 
the  viking  and  strategic  world.  England  seems 
to  have  suffered  most  by  his  unwelcome  visits 
and  his  name  inspired  terror  among  the  coast 
inhabitants  of  the  British  Isles.  After  he  had 
acquired  wealth  as  a  pirate,  become  experi- 
enced as  a  fighter,  and  accumulated  a  vast  fund 
of  worldly  wisdom,  he  returned  to  Norway  and 
was  proclaimed  king  at  Trondhjem.  He  had 
been  baptized  as  a  Christian  during  his  travels 
in  foreign  lands,  but  the  new  religion  did  not 


224  In  Viking  Land 

alter  materially  his  habits  of  life  until  he  be- 
came the  head  of  the  nation.  Then  he  took 
vigorous  measures  to  suppress  and  abolish 
vikingism  and  heathenism,  "  both  of  which 
objects,  and  their  respective  worth  and  un- 
worth,  he  had  known  so  long  and  so  well." 

The  reign  of  Olaf  the  Saint  is  one  of  the 
mile-stones  in  Norwegian  history;  for  he  not 
only  abolished  heathenism,  but  he  gave  the 
Norse  kingdom  a  recognized  place  among  the 
nations  of  Europe  which  it  had  not  hitherto 
held.  He  rebuilt  the  ruined  royal  palace  and 
St.  Clement's  church  at  Trondhjem;  promoted 
commerce  and  afforded  protection  to  trade; 
erected  fortresses;  reformed  the  system  of 
taxation,  and  hanged  dishonest  tax-gatherers. 
He  had  apparently  a  clear  conception  of  na- 
tional unity,  and  he  set  to  work  with  deliberate 
purpose  to  unite  the  scattered  Norwegian  prov- 
inces under  the  cross  of  Christ.  He  marched 
from  one  part  of  the  kingdom  to  another  with 
armed  men  and  "  severely  punished  those  who 
secretly  or  openly  sacrificed  to  the  old  gods  or 
indulged  in  any  pagan  practices.  Some  were 
outlawed  and  their  property  confiscated,  others 
were  maimed,  and  a  few  were  hanged  or  be- 
headed." Thus  remarks  Carlyle,  "  King 


Trondhjem  225 

Olaf's  struggles  in  the  matter  of  religion  set- 
tled the  question  in  Norway.  By  these  rough 
methods  of  his,  whatever  we  may  think  of  them, 
heathenism  had  got  itself  smashed  dead,  and 
was  no  more  heard  of  in  that  country. ' ' 

Olaf  died  as  he  had  lived  —  fighting  and 
"  doing  deadliest  execution  on  his  busiest  ene- 
mies to  right  and  to  left."  His  body  was  car- 
ried from  the  battle-field  to  the  hut  of  a  peas- 
ant, where  it  was  touched  by  a  blind  man  and 
he  was  at  once  miraculously  restored  to  sight. 
With  this  legend  as  a  starting-point,  others 
were  soon  forthcoming,  and  the  church  of 
Rome  was  induced  to  include  the  dead  king  in 
its  calendar  of  saints.  After  his  remains  had 
been  placed  in  a  reliquary  on  the  high  altar 
of  St.  Clement's  church,  monks  and  priests 
who  were  interested  in  the  religious  prosperity 
of  Trondhjem  contrived  to  make  his  shrine  a 
place  of  pilgrimage.  All  sorts  of  legends  were 
fabricated  and  it  was  gradually  impressed 
upon  an  ignorant  and  superstitious  people  that 
great  benefits  were  to  be  derived  from  a  visit 
to  the  tomb  of  the  saint.  It  was  the  resort  of 
thousands  of  pilgrims  each  year  who  sought 
physical  relief,  mental  consolation,  or  spiritual 
aid  at  the  shrine  of  St.  Olaf;  but  the  pilgrim- 


226  In  Viking  Land 

ages,  so  profitable  to  Trondhjem,  were  ended 
by  the  introduction  of  Protestantism  into  Nor- 
way. 

The  cathedral,  which  was  designed  as  the 
final  resting-place  of  St.  Olaf  as  well  as  the 
metropolitan  church  of  Norway,  was  begun 
during  the  reign  of  Olaf  the  Quiet  (1066-1093), 
and  after  its  completion  the  shrine  of  Olaf  was 
transferred  hither.  The  cathedral  was  built  in 
the  Eomanesque  style  of  architecture  in  vogue 
during  the  eleventh  century.  The  material 
used  was  uncut  hard  stone,  while  soapstone  was 
used  for  the  base,  the  corner-stones,  the  but- 
tresses, and  the  mouldings  of  doors  and  win- 
dows. The  ceiling  was  of  wood  with  visible 
rafters,  and  the  small  windows  were  placed 
high  up  in  the  walls. 

During  the  early  days  of  Christianity  in  Nor- 
way the  church  was  administered  by  the  bish- 
ops of  Nidaros  (Trondhjem),  Selje  (Bergen), 
and  Oslo  (Christiania),  under  the  direction  of 
the  archbishop  of  Hamburg  and  Bremen.  The 
growing  national  sentiment,  however,  made  it 
important  that  Norway  should  have  her  own 
archbishop.  Negotiations  with  this  object  in 
view  were  opened  with  Eome,  and  in  1151  Pope 
Eugene  III  consented  to  the  appointment  of 


Trondhjem  227 

an  archbishop  for  Norway.  Aside  from  the 
fact  that  she  possessed  the  shrine  of  Olaf  the 
Saint,  Trondhjem  had  in  1110  secured  from  a 
crusader  a  fragment  of  the  true  cross,  thus 
adding  to  her  ecclesiastical  importance.  A 
legate  was  sent  from  Kome  in  1152  with  full 
apostolical  power  to  establish  the  new  archi- 
episcopal  see  and  to  settle  all  matters  touching 
the  ecclesiastical  province  of  Norway.  This 
legate  was  Nicholas  Brekespere,  an  English- 
man, who  had  worked  his  way  from  a  humble 
station  in  life  up  to  the  dignity  of  a  cardinal, 
and  later  he  became  Pope  Adrian  IV. 

Trondhjem  was  selected  as  the  seat  of  the 
new  archiepiscopal  see,  and  the  bishop  of  Sta- 
vanger  was  made  archbishop  of  Norway.  The 
country  was  divided  into  eleven  bishoprics, 
viz.,  Trondhjem,  Bergen,  Stavanger,  Chris- 
tiania  (Oslo),  Hamar,  Skaalholt  and  Holen  in 
Iceland,  Greenland,  the  Shetland  islands  and 
the  Orkneys,  and  the  Hebrides  with  the  Isle  of 
Man.  Colleges  of  priests  were  organized  in 
connection  with  the  cathedral  school  to  act  with 
and  assist  the  bishops.  The  right  of  making 
gifts  and  offerings  to  the  church  was  greatly 
extended,  and  new  sources  of  revenue  were 
provided  for  the  cathedral,  which,  added  to 


228  In  Viking  Land 

the  donations  of  the  pilgrims,  gave  it  a  large 
and  independent  fortune. 

The  archbishop  made  immediate  provision 
for  the  enlargement  of  the  cathedral.  The 
western  gables  and  the  towers  had  to  be  pulled 
down  to  allow  of  the  erection  of  a  central 
tower ;  but  the  main  part  of  the  old  church  was 
retained  as  the  eastern  arm  of  the  new  cathe- 
dral. The  transept  was  constructed  in  the 
Anglo-Norman  round-arch  style,  with  uncov- 
ered rafters  and  slender  quadrangular  pillars. 
It  was  built  in  three  stories,  the  upper  two 
containing  inside  galleries  with  columns  and 
pillars.  To  this  period  belongs  the  still-exist- 
ing vestry  built  on  the  north  side  of  the 
chancel  as  a  separate  chapel. 

The  first  archbishop,  having  died  in  1157  and 
his  successor  having  clashed  with  the  king  on 
questions  of  revenues,  was  forced  to  live  in 
exile  in  England  for  three  years.  During  his 
sojourn  abroad  he  became  acquainted  with  the 
new  style  of  architecture,  the  so-called  Gothic, 
which  had  recently  been  brought  from  France 
and  was  employed  in  the  rebuilding  of  the 
cathedral  at  Canterbury.  When  work  on  the 
cathedral  was  resumed  at  Trondhjem  the  plans 
were  in  consequence  modified.  To  this  period 


Trondhjem  229 

belongs  St.  Olaf  s  well,  the  waters  of  which  in 
the  days  of  the  pilgrimages  were  said  to  pos- 
sess healing  properties.  To-day  they  are 
slightly  calcarious.  The  well  is  thirty-six  feet 
deep;  narrow  at  the  top,  but  widening  down- 
ward like  a  bottle,  and  tapering  again  at  the 
bottom.  Below  the  ground  it  is  built  of  un- 
dressed stone. 

During  the  reign  of  Haakon  Haakonsson 
great  progress  was  made  in  the  additions  to 
the  cathedral.  The  side  aisles  were  distin- 
guished by  sharply  projecting  buttresses  sup- 
porting the  vault  by  arches ;  besides  the  spires 
and  turreted  pillars  at  the  corners,  five  towers 
were  added,  one  of  which  was  a  high  central 
tower.  The  cathedral  when  finished  had  three 
hundred  and  sixteen  windows,  three  thousand, 
three  hundred  and  sixty  pillars,  and  forty 
statues,  exclusive  of  sculptured  heads  and 
faces.  The  twenty-five  chapels  were  also 
beautifully  carved  and  adorned.  The  first 
great  ceremony  in  the  completed  cathedral  was 
the  coronation  of  King  Haakon  the  Longlegs 
the  10th  of  August  in  the  year  1299. 

Twenty-nine  years  later  the  cathedral  was 
burned.  The  archbishop  wrote :  * '  Not  only 
the  woodwork  inside  and  outside  was  burnt 


230  In  Viking  Land 

down,  but  also  the  stone  posts,  bells  and  many 
precious  articles,  as  well  as  pillars  and  arches 
above  and  below,  so  that  we  may  expect  even 
greater  damage  than  has  actually  happened  if 
we  do  not  hasten  to  its  repair."  The  work  of 
restoration  was  begun,  but  the  plague,  known 
as  the  "  Black  Death,"  visited  Norway;  a 
great  part  of  the  population,  including  the 
clergy,  was  swept  away,  and  a  long  time 
elapsed  before  the  work  of  restoration  was 
begun.  In  1371  the  archbishop  obtained  a 
papal  brief  of  indulgence  for  the  rebuilding  of 
the  cathedral;  but  it  was  struck  by  lightning 
in  1432  and  burned  a  second  time.  During  the 
century  that  followed  the  work  of  restoration 
was  frequently  resumed  and  interrupted. 

Trondhjem  was  visited  by  a  fearful  confla- 
gration in  1531  and  the  cathedral  suffered 
with  the  town.  Only  the  chancels  were  left 
and  these  were  severely  damaged.  The  arch- 
bishop made  strenuous  efforts  to  obtain  money 
to  rebuild  the  church,  but  the  ominous  signs  of 
the  approaching  reformatory  movement  weak- 
ened the  authority  of  the  clergy.  When  the 
new  faith  was  made  the  state  religion  of  Nor- 
way the  archbishop  fled  the  country  and  the 


Trondhjem  231 

properties  belonging  to  the  cathedral,  as  well 
as  those  devoted  to  the  income  of  the  arch- 
bishop, were  immediately  seized  upon  by  the 
Danish  king,  while  the  monasteries  were 
largely  given  to  the  noblemen  of  the  Danish 
court.  The  cathedral  was  plundered  of  its 
treasures,  including  the  shrine  of  Olaf  the 
Saint,  which  yielded  3,250  ounces  of  silver. 

The  cathedral  having  lost  its  landed  estates 
and  other  sources  of  revenue,  the  Protestant 
bishops  were  without  funds  with  which  to  re- 
build the  church.  Trondhjem,  however,  in 
1552  decided  to  pull  down  several  churches  and 
chapels  and  to  use  the  materials  for  the  resto- 
ration of  the  cathedral.  But  the  work  was  in- 
terrupted by  the  invasion  of  the  Swedes  in 
1564.  They  carried  St.  Olaf 's  shrine  and  his 
silver  coffin.  Very  little  was  done  for  three- 
quarters  of  a  century.  In  1633  a  private  citi- 
zen of  Trondhjem  had  a  vault  built  over  the 
high  choir,  and  five  years  later  a  spire  was 
erected  over  the  central  tower.  This  was 
damaged  by  lightning  in  1687  and  two  years 
later  it  was  blown  down  by  a  hurricane,  injur- 
ing the  northern  transept  and  the  vestry  of  the 
main  structure.  It  was  again  struck  by  light- 


232  In  Viking  Land 

ning  in  1719  and  everything  was  burned  that 
could  burn. 

Since  1869  the  cathedral  has  undergone  a 
thorough  restoration.  It  has  been  entirely  re- 
roofed;  the  chapter  house  and  the  choir,  with 
its  octagonal  apse  and  elaborate  south  portal, 
have  been  rebuilt;  and  the  great  central  tower 
has  been  completed.  But  the  work  of  restora- 
tion will  require  many  years  before  it  is  accom- 
plished. The  annual  grant  for  this  purpose, 
amounting  to  about  thirty  thousand  dollars  a 
year,  is  provided  by  the  national  government, 
the  savings  bank  of  Trondhjem,  and  private 
individuals.  It  is  being  rebuilt  of  a  grayish- 
blue  soap-stone. 

Besides  its  saint  and  its  cathedral,  Trond- 
hjem has  other  interests  for  the  traveller.  It 
has  very  broad  streets  —  from  one  hundred  to 
one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  wide  —  that  run 
north  and  south,  commanding  a  fine  view  of 
the  beautiful  fjord  and  the  island  of  Munkholm, 
once  the  seat  of  a  flourishing  Benedictine  mon- 
astery. The  city  has  an  academy  of  science, 
a  museum  of  industrial  art,  a  technical  high 
school,  and  other  public  institutions  of  interest. 
Trondhjem  has  direct  steamer  connection  with 
Bergen  and  the  North  Cape  and  railway  con- 


THE    BROAD    STREETS    OF   TRONDHJEM. 


THE    UNION    RAILWAY    STATION    AT    TRONDHJEM. 


Trondhjem 233 

nections  with  Christiania  and  Stockholm.  It 
has  a  fine  union  railway  station  which,  until 
recently,  was  the  most  northern  building  of  its 
kind  in  the  world. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

BEBGEN   AND   THE   HANSEATIC   LEAGUE 

Picturesque  location  of  Bergen  —  Foundation  of  the  city  by 
King  Olaf  the  Quiet  —  Early  monastic  institutions  —  The 
royal  palace  and  Haakon's  Hall  —  Bergen  during  the  civil 
wars  —  Nature  of  the  Hanseatic  league  —  Its  place  in  the 
history  of  European  commerce  —  First  foothold  in  Bergen 

—  Character  of  the  German  merchants  —  Articles  of  trade 

—  Oppressive  power  of  the  league  finally  broken  —  Bergen 
during  the  eighteenth  century  —  Commerce  injured  by  the 
war  between  Denmark  and  England  —  Growth  of  industrial 
arts  —  The  fishing  industry  —  Municipal  institutions  —  Art 
treasures  —  Leper  hospitals. 

BERGEN,  one  of  the  oldest  and  most  pictur- 
esque cities  of  Norway,  has  a  population  of 
eighty-one  thousand  people.  It  is  built  on  a 
promontory,  and  between  it  and  the  mainland 
on  its  northern  side  is  the  harbour  of  Han- 
seatic fame,  the  mainland  to  the  south  forming 
a  large  and  natural  haven.  The  business  part 
of  the  town  is  on  the  northern  side  and  the 
villas  and  country  seats  of  the  merchants  on 
the  south  of  the  mainland.  But  for  the  four 
lofty  mountains  which  rise  in  the  background 

284 


Bergen  and  the  Hanseatic  League  235 

Bergen  would  be  encircled  with  fjords.  The 
climate  of  Bergen  is  similar  to  that  of  the  west 
coast  of  Scotland;  the  winters  are  brief  and 
not  cold,  and  the  summers  have  a  mean  sea- 
sonal temperature  of  about  58  degrees  Fahren- 
heit. The  rainfall  is  something  enormous, 
about  six  and  a  half  feet  a  year,  in  consequence 
of  which,  coupled  with  the  mildness  of  the  tem- 
perature, the  vegetation  is  both  abundant  and 
varied. 

The  city  was  founded  in  1070  by  King  Olaf 
the  Quiet,  after  the  pattern  of  English  coast- 
towns,  with  quays  along  the  side  of  the  bay. 
The  royal  residence,  built  forty  years  later, 
was  located  on  Holmen,  the  present  Bergen- 
hus,  and  the  cathedral  which  was  begun  at  the 
same  period  was  not  completed  for  a  hundred 
years.  The  numerous  monasteries  —  Benedic- 
tine, Cistercian,  Augustine,  and  Franciscan  — 
lay  just  outside  of  the  town.  By  1420  Bergen 
had  as  many  as  twenty-five  churches  and  chap- 
els and  the  trade  guilds  had  three  religious 
organizations.  Christ  church  was  the  largest 
ecclesiastical  structure  in  the  city.  It  was  built 
to  house  a  piece  of  the  crown  of  thorns  worn 
by  Christ  that  King  Philip  III  of  France  sent 
as  a  present  to  King  Magnus  the  Law-Mender 


236  In  Viking  Land 

Of  all  the  early  churches  but  two  remain,  St. 
Mary's  and  the  Holy  Cross. 

The  royal  castle  on  Holmen  was  surrounded 
by  strong  walls,  with  immense  towers  over  the 
gates,  and  two  stone  halls,  both  in  the  Gothic 
style.  Only  one  of  the  tower  gates  and  Haa- 
kon's  hall  survive.  Before  the  period  of  the 
Hanseatic  league  Bergen  had  many  fine  pri- 
vate residences  in  the  old  Norse  style  of  do- 
mestic architecture,  but  most  of  them  disap- 
peared during  the  centuries  that  the  city  was 
in  the  hands  of  the  foreigners. 

Bergen  was  a  wealthy  fishing  city  as  early 
as  the  time  of  Haakon  Haakonsson  (1217- 
1263).  The  exportation  of  cod  and  herring 
was  something  enormous,  occasioned  by  the 
numerous  fast  days  then  observed  in  Europe. 
Handicrafts  flourished,  and  after  the  promul- 
gation of  the  new  law  of  Magnus  the  Law- 
Mender  (1263-1280)  each  craft  had  its  partic- 
ular location  in  the  town.  During  the  early 
period  Bergen  was  the  scene  of  many  fierce  bat- 
tles. It  was  here  that  King  Magnus  the  Blind 
was  taken  prisoner  and  mutilated;  here  that 
Harald  Gille  and  Sigurd  Mund  were  killed,  and 
here  that  the  Birchlegs  fought  their  bloody  but 
indecisive  battle  in  1198.  Several  coronations 


Bergen  and  the  Hanseatic  League  237 

and  royal  funerals  took  place  in  Christ  church, 
for  Bergen  was  the  residence  of  the  Norse 
kings  for  about  a  hundred  years.  But  the  chief 
interest  of  Bergen  for  the  traveller  is  her  con- 
nection with  the  Hanseatic  league,  a  great  Ger- 
man commercial  trust  that  monopolized  the 
foreign  trade  of  Norway  for  more  than  four 
hundred  years. 

The  Hanseatic  league  was  a  combination  of 
merchants  of  certain  towns  in  northern  Ger- 
many for  the  protection  of  commerce,  the  aboli- 
tion of  competition,  and  the  enrichment  of 
themselves  by  monopolizing  the  trade  in  for- 
eign countries.  Its  aims  and  methods  are  ad- 
mirably illustrated  by  the  enormous  industrial 
combinations  in  the  United  States.  The  formal 
organization  of  the  Hanseatic  league  dates 
from  the  year  1241.  When  its  power  was 
greatest  it  controlled  the  trade  of  sixty-four 
important  towns  in  Europe,  extending  from 
Bergen  in  the  north  to  Venice  in  the  south, 
and  from  Novgorod  and  Smolensk  in  the  east, 
to  London  and  York  in  the  west.  Commercial 
towns  that  did  not  join  the  league  met  a  fate 
not  unlike  that  of  the  small  American  producer 
who  does  not  join  the  trust.  The  league's  ban 
was  more  potent  than  that  of  the  popes,  for 


238  In  Viking  Land 

commercial  towns  that  did  not  become  members 
of  the  federation  and  conform  to  its  exactions 
lost  their  commerce  at  one  blow.  Bremen  once 
had  the  temerity  to  decline  membership  in  the 
league,  and  for  a  period  of  thirty  years  she 
was  "  unhansed."  No  city  was  permitted  to 
have  dealings  with  her.  She  was  impoverished, 
grass  grew  in  her  streets,  and  hunger  and  des- 
olation took  up  their  abode  in  her  midst. 
When  the  penitent  merchants  finally  sought 
admission  to  the  league  they  had  to  take  up 
heavy  responsibilities  in  atonement  for  their 
misdeed.  No  matter  what  the  cost,  the  league 
was  determined  to  have  a  monopoly  of  trade, 
and  this  it  did  by  concentrating  the  produc- 
tions of  a  country  at  a  single  point.  This  gave 
the  Hanseatic  merchants  not  only  the  first  re- 
fusal of  goods,  but  likewise  the  power  of  dom- 
inating the  markets.  The  control  of  the  com- 
merce of  Europe  was  one  of  the  primary  aims 
of  the  league  and  it  acquired  this  control  in 
utter  disregard  of  moral  laws  or  the  rights  of 
the  people  whom  it  exploited. 

The  first  treaty  of  Lubeck  with  Bergen  was 
concluded  by  King  Haakon  Haakonsson  in 
1250,  although  a  hundred  years  elapsed  before 
the  league  was  in  complete  control  of  the  city. 


Bergen  and  the  Hanseatic  League  239 

Hitherto  the  merchants  of  Bergen  had  enjoyed 
a  brisk  trade  with  England  and  the  Baltic 
ports,  but  all  this  was  changed  when  the  league 
located  in  Norway.  Merchants  were  no  longer 
permitted  to  buy  from  or  to  sell  to  the  Dutch 
or  English ;  and  Bergen,  that  had  been  in  exclu- 
sive possession  of  the  trade  with  Greenland, 
had  to  renounce  all  maritime  traffic.  Traders 
sent  to  transact  the  business  were  Germans; 
and  the  local  merchants  "  saw  themselves 
forced  to  pawn  their  land  to  the  Hanseatics, 
in  return  for  the  mere  necessities  of  life,  and 
as  they  could  rarely  redeem  their  pledges,  the 
whole  city  of  Bergen  gradually  fell  into  the 
hands  of  these  opulent  traders." 

The  Norse  kings  at  first  unwittingly  made 
concessions  to  the  Hansa  merchants,  and  when 
once  in  their  power  they  were  forced  to  con- 
tinue the  extension  of  trade  privileges.  When 
Magnus  Ericsson  in  1367  refused  to  grant  the 
additional  concessions  which  were  desired,  the 
league  sent  its  fleet  to  Norway  and  cruelly  pil- 
laged and  burned  all  the  towns  on  the  southern 
coast  and  the  king  was  finally  forced  to  yield. 
The  Germans  not  only  acquired  complete  con- 
trol of  commerce,  but  also  of  the  industries. 
German  shoemakers,  tanners,  tailors,  cloth- 


240  In  Viking  Land 

dressers,  and  goldsmiths  supplanted  the  native 
artisans;  and  at  the  time  of  its  greatest  power, 
the  league  maintained  a  force  of  more  than 
three  thousand  men  at  Bergen.  The  men  were 
all  required  to  take  vows  of  celibacy  during  the 
years  that  they  were  in  the  service  of  the  league, 
the  assumption  being  that  marriage  with  Norse 
women  might  result  in  divulging  some  of  the 
Hanseatic  secrets.  With  scarcely  an  exception 
the  men  sent  to  Bergen  belonged  to  the  lowest 
classes  of  German  society,  and  they  generally 
led  low  and  immoral  lives.  The  rough  and 
cruel  initiation,  which  every  new  comer  was 
forced  to  undergo,  would  have  prevented  peo- 
ple from  the  more  refined  classes  from  accept- 
ing service  in  the  league. 

The  Germans  brought  to  Bergen,  besides 
articles  of  food,  salt,  beer,  wine,  cloth,  and 
metal  goods,  and  they  exported  from  Bergen 
to  England,  Holland  and  Friesland  fish-prod- 
ucts, butter,  leather,  and  timber.  The  fish  of 
Norway  constituted  a  gold-mine  for  the  league, 
for  at  this  time  all  Europe  was  Roman  or 
Greek  Catholic,  and  the  fast  days  were  numer- 
ous and  rigidly  observed.  But  the  poor  fisher- 
men of  Nordland  and  the  western  fjords  fared 
badly,  for  the  league  kept  separate  sets  of 


Bergen  and  the  Hanseatic  League  241 

scales  for  buying  and  selling  fish,  and  it  always 
fixed  its  own  prices.  Thus  the  returns  to  the 
natives  were  insignificant. 

The  rule  of  the  league  grew  so  oppressive  in 
the  sixteenth  century  that  King  Christian  III 
determined  to  restrict  its  power.  His  first  re- 
form measure  put  a  stop  to  certain  immoral 
practices  of  the  merchants ;  later  he  allowed  the 
natives  of  Bergen  to  share  in  the  handicrafts, 
and  finally  the  monopoly  of  the  Nordland  fish- 
eries was  taken  from  the  league.  With  the  loss 
of  exclusive  privileges  the  prosperity  and  in- 
fluence waned,  and  its  losses  were  so  great  dur- 
ing the  Thirty  Years'  War  that  it  was  forced 
to  dissolve.  Some  of  the  merchants,  artisans, 
clerks,  and  apprentices  returned  to  Germany, 
but  many  remained  in  Bergen  and  became 
naturalized  Norwegian  citizens. 

The  oppressive  power  of  the  league  once 
broken,  Bergen  prospered.  With  the  opening 
of  the  eighteenth  century  her  mercantile  fleet 
was  the  largest  in  Scandinavia.  The  destruc- 
tive fire  of  1702  was  a  severe  blow  as  the 
accumulated  wealth  of  the  city  went  up  in  the 
flames.  The  war  with  Sweden  followed  the  fire 
and  Bergen  lost  half  her  fleet.  Algerian  pirates 
at  this  period  were  practising  the  arts  of  by-- 


242  In  Viking  Land 

gone  vikings,  and  Norwegian  merchant  vessels 
suffered  greatly.  The  development  of  the 
Newfoundland  cod  fisheries  by  England  and 
France  created  a  serious  rival  for  Bergen. 
Nevertheless  the  city  regained  her  losses.  A 
treaty  was  concluded  with  the  Mediterranean 
pirates ;  local  industries  were  improved  and  de- 
veloped ;  the  Greenland  trade  company  was  or- 
ganized, and  by  the  close  of  the  century  Ber- 
gen's  fleet  had  increased  from  sixty-six  to  one 
hundred  and  fourteen  ships,  all  engaged  in 
foreign  trade. 

The  commerce  of  Bergen  was  checked  by  the 
war  between  Denmark  and  England  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  nineteenth  century  and  the  pros- 
perity of  the  city  arrested.  Thirty-eight  of  her 
ships  were  captured  in  British  waters,  twelve 
in  the  Mediterranean,  twenty-six  in  the  Skag- 
erak  and  the  North  Sea  and  thirty  were  con- 
demned or  wrecked  in  foreign  harbours.  But 
with  the  peace  of  1814,  the  exportation  of  fish 
set  Bergen  on  her  feet  again,  and  by  degrees 
trade  slipped  back  into  the  old  tracks.  Up  to 
1835  Bergen  was  the  largest  city  in  Norway, 
and  she  continued  first  in  commercial  impor- 
tance so  late  as  1876.  Since  these  years  Chris- 
tiania  has  stood  first  in  population  and  trade. 


Bergen  and  the  Hanseatic  League  243 

At  the  present  time  Bergen  has  two  hundred 
and  ninety-one  steamships,  with  a  tonnage  of 
260,500,  and  seventy-six  sailing  vessels. 

The  industrial  arts  have  made  marked  prog- 
ress in  Bergen  during  the  past  fifty  years. 
There  are  three  hundred  and  thirty-five  fac- 
tories in  the  city  and  its  suburbs  which  employ 
seven  thousand,  six  hundred  and  fifty  persons. 
The  chief  industries  are  breweries,  flour-mills, 
founderies,  tanneries,  margarine  factories, 
paper  mills,  engineering  work-shops,  and  spin- 
ning and  weaving  factories.  Her  trade  rela- 
tions are  largest  with  England  and  Germany, 
with  whom  she  has  direct  and  frequent  steamer 
connections.  The  largest  import  item  is  flour 
and  the  largest  export  item  fish. 

In  Bergen  everything  in  trade  is  umbrellas 
or  fish.  The  city  is  the  centre  of  the  largest 
fish  industry  in  the  world;  and  in  cod  alone 
it  sells  more  than  seven  million  dollars'  worth 
each  year.  The  fish  market  at  the  foot  of  mar- 
ket-place is  of  surpassing  interest  to  the  travel- 
ler. Small  fishing  boats  are  drawn  up  along 
the  quay,  the  bows  inward,  with  the  fish  lying 
loose  in  bow  and  stern  where  they  were  thrown 
after  being  caught ;  and  just  outside  the  craft 
of  small  boats  are  the  larger  decked  smacks. 


244  In  Viking  Land 

Tihere  are  innumerable  tubs  and  vats  on  the 
shore  containing  the  live  fish,  for  the  people  of 
Bergen  prefer  to  buy  their  fish  alive.  The  Ber- 
gen fisherman  is  an  interesting  ethnic  type.  He 
has  a  "  muscular  body,  blue  eyes,  high  cheek 
bones,  a  powerful  jaw,  shaggy  beard,  thickly 
matted  hair,  sou'wester,  big  boots,  sleeves 
rolled  up,  knife  and  marline  spike  in  his  belt, 
rough  trousers,  and  red  shirt."  Not  only  the 
fish  market  but  the  German  quay  is  literally 
packed  with  fish,  fishermen,  and  fishing  smacks. 
Bergen  is  one  of  the  best  administered  cities 
in  Europe.  It  has  an  efficient  system  of  public 
and  private  schools;  flourishing  commercial 
and  technical  schools,  and  a  public  library  pat- 
terned after  similar  institutions  in  the  United 
States.  The  museums  of  science  and  art  and 
the  Hanseatic  and  fisheries  museums  are  ex- 
cellently kept  up.  The  notable  historic  monu- 
ments include  Haakon's  hall,  "  the  large  stone 
hall,"  referred  to  by  the  sagas,  the  Eosen- 
kranz  tower,  and  St.  Mary's  church.  The  city 
has  commemorative  monuments  of  some  emi- 
nent natives  of  Bergen.  There  is  a  good  statue 
of  Ludvig  Holberg,  the  social  reformer,  poet, 
and  writer  of  comedies;  an  excellent  allegori- 
cal monument  of  Ole  Bull,  the  violinist,  by 


Bergen  and  the  Hanseatic  League  245 

Stephen  Sinding,  and  a  statue  of  Christie,  the 
president  of  the  first  Norwegian  parliament. 
Among  other  eminent  natives  of  Bergen  may 
be  mentioned  Johan  Welhaven,  the  poet,  Johan 
Christian  Dahl,  the  painter,  and  Edvard  Grieg, 
the  music  composer. 

In  the  matter  of  art  treasures  Bergen  has 
not  been  able  to  compete  with  the  national  gal- 
lery at  Christiania,  but  she  has  an  altogether 
creditable  collection  of  paintings  and  sculpture. 
Among  the  earlier  Norwegian  painters  repre- 
sented are  Dahl,  Fearnley,  Baade,  Frich,  and 
Gorbitz.  Tidemand  is  represented  by  the 
"  Sorrowful  Tidings  "  and  "  The  Girl  Bead- 
ing ' ' ;  Gude  by  five  landscapes  and  sea  pic- 
tures; Eckersberg  by  "  The  Bridal  Party  in 
Hardanger  ";  Miiller  by  four  forest  scenes, 
and  Ludwig  Munthe  by  three  winter  subjects. 
The  modern  painters  of  the  first  rank  —  Thau- 
low,  Werenskiold,  Otto  Sinding,  Peterssen,  and 
Krohg  —  are  also  well  represented  at  Bergen. 
The  gallery  also  possesses  a  large  collection  of 
water  colours  and  drawings  by  Norwegian 
painters,  and  it  frequently  exhibits  the  works 
of  contemporary  artists. 

Bergen  has  two  institutions  to  which  a  pa- 
thetic interest  attaches  —  the  leper  hospitals, 


246  In  Viking  Land 

one  of  which  has  been  in  existence  since  the 
middle  ages.  This  dread  disease  was  formerly 
very  prevalent  along  the  Norwegian  coast.  The 
damp  climate,  the  absence  of  vegetables,  the 
monotonous  salt-fish  diet,  and  the  hardships 
and  exposures  incident  to  the  life  of  the  fisher- 
men favoured  its  development.  Since  the 
lepers  have  been  isolated  and  denied  the  right 
of  marriage  (1856),  there  has  been  a  decrease 
of  nearly  seventy  per  cent,  in  the  number  of 
cases.  In  the  Bergen  leper  hospitals  the  pa- 
tients work  at  handicrafts ;  and,  as  the  articles 
that  are  made  are  carefully  cleansed  before 
leaving  the  hospital,  the  spread  of  the  disease 
by  infection  is  presumably  averted. 


CHAPTER  XVH 


The  modern  capital  founded  by  King  Christian  IV  —  Its  rapid 
growth  —  Three  destructive  fires  —  Some  notable  buildings 
—  Fortress  of  Akershus  and  other  historic  monuments  — 
Control  of  the  liquor  traffic  in  Christiania  —  Marked  de- 
crease in  intemperance  —  Improvement  in  public  morals 
and  decrease  in  the  death  rate  —  The  Christiania  fjord  — 
Bygdii  and  the  people's  museum  —  Hanko  and  summer  re- 
sorts —  Holmenkollen  and  winter  sports  —  Skiing,  ski-jump- 
ing, and  ski-sailing  —  Tobogganing,  hill-sliding,  and  ice- 
pegging. 

CHRISTIANIA,  the  modern  capital,  has  a  beau- 
tiful situation  at  the  head  of  a  fjord  of  the 
same  name.  As  early  as  1050  Harald  the  Hard- 
Ruler  founded  the  town  of  Oslo,  which  later  be- 
came one  of  the  trading  stations  of  the  Han- 
seatic  league,  and  erected  a  cathedral  where 
several  of  the  Norse  kings  were  subsequently 
buried,  and  where  James  I  of  England  married 
Anne  of  Denmark  in  1589.  But  Oslo  was 
burned  by  the  inhabitants  in  1624  to  prevent 
its  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  Swedes.  The 
modern  city,  like  St.  Petersburg,  was  built  by 

247 


248  In  Viking  Land 

royal  mandate.  Christian  IV  of  Denmark, 
who,  in  an  amateurish  way,  was  something  of 
an  architect,  visited  the  silver  mines  at  Kongs- 
berg  the  year  Oslo  was  burned.  He  decided 
to  build  a  new  city  a  bit  to  the  west  of  the  old 
town  and  to  give  it  his  name.  The  inhabitants 
of  Oslo  were  not  permitted  to  rebuild  on  their 
old  grounds,  but  had  lands  allotted  to  them 
on  the  west  bank  of  the  Akers  river.  The  peo- 
ple of  Drammen  and  Moss  were  required  to 
take  up  residence  in  the  new  city,  and  the  tim- 
ber within  a  given  district  could  be  sold  only 
to  those  engaged  in  building  Christiania. 

While  Christiania  has  suffered  from  three 
destructive  fires  — 1686,  1708,  and  1858- 
measured  by  Norwegian  standards,  its  growth 
has  been  singularly  rapid,  and  it  has  to-day  a 
population  of  more  than  230,000  people.  It  is 
the  seat  of  the  national  government,  the  su- 
preme court  of  the  country,  the  national  uni- 
versity and  museums,  and  the  residence  of  the 
king.  It  is  first  in  commerce,  as  well  as  in 
population,  and  has  a  merchant  fleet  of  two 
hundred  steamers  and  one  hundred  and  fifty 
sailing  vessels.  There  is  a  large  export  trade 
in  timber,  paper,  stone,  herring,  beer,  and  ice. 
The  industries  include  ship-building  works, 


Christiania  the  Modern  Capital    249 

paper  mills,  and  breweries.  The  city  also  ex- 
cels in  the  manufacture  of  jewelry,  and  par- 
ticularly in  filigree  work  and  enamel. 

Christiania  is  a  clean  and  well-built  city,  with 
many  handsome  buildings  of  granite,  red  syen- 
ite, and  Labrador  stone.  Among  the  important 
public  buildings  may  be  mentioned  the  king's 
palace,  the  house  of  parliament,  the  national 
theatre,  the  university,  the  art  gallery,  and  the 
industrial  and  historical  museums.  The  king's 
palace,  an  imposing  structure  at  the  head  of 
the  broad  Carl-Johans  Gaden  in  the  west  end 
of  the  city,  does  not  improve  upon  close  inspec- 
tion. The  house  of  parliament,  while  not  an 
imposing  building,  has  an  impressive  fagade 
and  the  Storthings  Hall  contains  one  of  Werge- 
land's  best  historical  paintings.  The  national 
theatre  is  one  of  the  most  recent  buildings  of 
the  capital,  and  the  university  buildings  are 
probably  the  most  effective  architecturally. 
The  national  gallery,  built  in  the  Italian  Ren- 
aissance style,  has  an  excellent  collection  of 
paintings  by  Norwegian  artists,  reference  to 
which  is  made  in  a  subsequent  chapter  on  the 
art  of  Norway. 

The  fortress  of  Akershus,  dating  from  the 
thirteenth  century,  is  the  most  important  his- 


250  In  Viking  Land 

toric  pile  in  the  city.  It  has  played  a  leading 
role  in  the  history  of  Norway,  having  been  re- 
peatedly unsuccessfully  besieged  by  the  Swedes 
and  Danes.  It  is  now  used  as  an  arsenal  and 
prison.  Among  other  notable  monuments  in 
the  city  may  be  mentioned  the  statue  of  Chris- 
tian IV  by  Jacobsen,  the  equestrian  statue  of 
Bernadotte  in  front  of  the  royal  palace  by 
Bergslien,  the  statue  of  Wergeland  by  the  same 
sculptor,  and  the  colossal  statues  of  Ibsen  and 
Bjornson  in  front  of  the  national  theatre  by 
Stephen  Sinding.  There  is  also  a  seated  figure 
of  Asbjornsen,  the  writer  of  fairy  tales,  on  St. 
John's  Hill,  by  Bergslien.  The  oldest  church 
in  the  city  is  the  Gamle  Akers  church  founded 
by  Olaf  the  Quiet  (1066-1093).  It  is  a  basilica 
in  the  English-Norman  Romanesque  style  of 
architecture. 

The  public  control  of  the  liquor  traffic  in 
Christiania  is  of  keen  interest  to  the  student 
of  municipal  administration.  The  Goteborg 
system  was  introduced  into  Norway  about  forty 
years  ago  and  it  has  resulted  in  a  tremendous 
decrease  in  the  use  of  alcoholic  beverages.  The 
Goteborg  system  gives  each  municipality  the 
right  to  decide  if  liquors  shall  be  sold  within  its 
jurisdiction;  and  since  its  adoption,  the  num- 


Christiania  the  Modern  Capital    251 

ber  of  places  where  liquor  is  sold  has  decreased 
from  five  hundred  and  one  to  one  hundred  and 
thirty,  in  spite  of  the  marked  increase  of  the 
population  of  the  country  during  the  same 
period.  The  purpose  of  the  system  is  not  to 
prevent  but  to  regulate  and  control  the  use  of 
spirits. 

Originally  Norway  did  not  enjoy  an  enviable 
reputation  in  the  matter  of  the  drink  habits  of 
her  people.  The  long  nights  of  winter,  the  cold 
weather,  the  damp  climate,  and  the  isolated 
habits  of  the  people  sent  them  to  the  pipe  for 
warmth  and  company  and  to  the  spirit  bottle 
as  an  accompaniment  to  the  tobacco  box.  In- 
temperance became  so  widespread  that  the 
decade  between  1830  and  1840  is  usually  char- 
acterized in  Norwegian  history  as  "the  liquor 
plague."  Its  disastrous  moral,  economic,  and 
hygienic  results  called  the  attention  of  the 
government  to  the  seriousness  of  the  problem, 
and  reform  measures,  regulating  the  traffic, 
were  forthwith  introduced  in  the  national  par- 
liament. 

With  the  adoption  of  the  Goteborg  system 
in  Christiania  in  1871,  the  local  liquor  dealers 
were  required  to  make  over  their  retail  rights 
to  certain  philanthropic  companies  authorized 


252  In  Viking  Land 

by  the  municipal  government.  These  compa- 
nies have  no  economic  interests  in  the  returns 
of  the  business,  hence,  instead  of  trying  to  in- 
crease their  patronage,  they  have  sought  to  re- 
duce it.  Moreover,  in  Norway  all  profits  from 
the  sale  of  spirits  go  to  objects  of  public  utility, 
rather  than  to  the  municipal  fund  as  in  Sweden. 
In  Christiania,  for  example,  the  profits  from 
the  sale  of  liquors  go  to  the  national  theatre, 
the  Salvation  Army,  the  art  and  industrial  mu- 
seums, temperance  societies,  children's  hospi- 
tals, and  vacation  tours  for  poor  children. 

This  is  distinctly  beneficial  to  the  health  and 
morals  of  the  communities  since  it  does  not 
tempt  stingy  municipalities  to  swell  their  reve- 
nues by  a  good  trade  in  the  sale  of  liquors. 
The  traffic  is  in  the  hands  of  a  corporation  of 
select  and  benevolent  citizens  who  are  entitled 
to  receive  five  per  cent,  on  their  investments. 
The  shares  of  the  corporation  are  held  by  men 
and  women  in  whom  the  municipalities  have  en- 
tire confidence,  and  those  engaged  to  dispense 
the  spirits  must  be  of  temperate  habits  and 
possess  high  moral  qualifications.  The  booze 
shops  are  generally  open  from  eight  o'clock  in 
the  morning  until  seven  in  winter  and  eight  in 


Christiania  the  Modern  Capital    253 

summer.  Evenings  preceding  Sundays  and 
holidays  they  are  required  to  close  at  six 
o'clock,  and  the  shops  are  closed  on  Sundays 
and  holidays.  One  drink  to  be  consumed  on  the 
premises,  or  a  bottle  to  be  consumed  elsewhere, 
may  be  sold  to  individuals  over  eighteen  years 
old  not  oftener  than  once  an  hour,  and  the  sale 
of  second  drinks  or  bottles  is  left  entirely  to 
the  discretion  of  the  salesmen  in  the  booze 
shops.  The  rooms  where  the  liquors  are  sold 
are  severely  plain,  no  one  is  allowed  to  sit 
down,  and  there  are  no  newspapers,  music,  or 
other  attractions. 

Norway  originally  consumed  more  alcohol 
per  inhabitant  than  any  country  in  Europe ;  to- 
day her  annual  consumption  per  inhabitant  is 
less  than  every  European  country,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  Finland,  where,  since  the  adoption  of 
women's  suffrage  the  booze  business  has  been 
practically  legislated  out  of  the  country.  Only 
a  fourth  of  the  quantity  of  spirits  is  consumed 
in  Norway  per  inhabitant  as  compared  with  the 
consumption  before  the  adoption  of  the  Gote- 
borg  system.  The  saving  to  the  people  in  dol- 
lars reaches  the  millions.  Crime  has  decreased 
and  the  decrease  in  the  death  rate  as  the  im- 
mediate result  of  alcoholism  has  dropped  from 


254  In  Viking  Land 

S3  per  10,000  of  the  population  to  10.5.  The 
Norwegian  people  are  educating  themselves  to 
total  abstinence,  and  the  national  total  absti- 
nence society,  which  has  the  hearty  co-operation 
of  the  government,  has  something  like  one  hun- 
dred and  thirty  thousand  members. 

It  should  be  noted  in  this  connection  that 
beer,  which  in  Norway  contains  about  three  and 
a  half  per  cent,  of  alcohol,  is  not  regarded  as  a 
liquor;  but  I  have  it  upon  good  authority  that 
"  it  would  take  a  long  time  to  become  intoxi- 
cated upon  the  light  Norwegian  beer."  The 
Goteborg  system  has  operated  so  admirably  in 
the  Scandinavian  countries  that  it  is  keenly  to 
be  regretted  that  no  American  community  has 
had  the  temerity  to  give  it  a  fair  trial. 

The  Christiania  fjord  is  picturesque  but  not 
grand,  as  compared  with  the  fjords  of  the 
western  coast.  It  is  so  cut  up  with  islands  that 
it  presents  the  appearance  of  innumerable 
small  lakes.  It  is  about  fifty  miles  long  and  is 
surrounded  by  rocky  banks  wooded  with  pines 
and  birches.  Geologically  it  is  a  chasm  in  the 
primeval  mountains  with  sunken  layers  of 
Silurian  slate  and  limestone  overlaid  by  masses 
of  volcanic  rock.  The  fjord  is  frozen  over 
about  two  months  of  the  year,  although  the 


Christiania  the  Modern  Capital    255 

winter  climate  of  Christiania  is  not  severe. 
The  winter  temperature  averages  about  23° 
and  the  summer  60°  Fahrenheit. 

Few  European  cities  have  such  attractive 
suburbs  as  Christiania.  To  the  west  is  Bygdo, 
a  wooded  peninsula  which  contains  the  royal 
chateau  of  Oscarshall  and  the  people's  museum 
illustrative  of  the  history  of  Norway.  Oscar- 
shall  is  a  tiny  palace  in  the  English  Gothic 
style.  It  is  adorned  with  paintings  represent- 
ing Norwegian  peasant  life  by  Tidemand  and 
landscapes  from  Frith jof's  saga  by  Gude.  The 
palace  commands  a  superb  view  of  the  fjord. 
The  national  museum  is  broadly  illustrative  of 
the  peasant  life  of  Norway.  It  contains 
fabrics,  furniture,  and  household  utensils  from 
the  different  sections  of  the  kingdom,  as  well 
as  completely  furnished  houses  typical  of  dif- 
ferent provinces  and  historic  periods.  A  tim- 
ber church  from  Gol  in  Hallingdal,  belonging 
to  the  thirteenth  century,  has  been  transferred 
to  the  museum  grounds,  and  there  are  several 
farmhouses  from  Telemarken  and  other  prov- 
inces, with  their  original  furniture  and  other 
appurtenances. 

To  the  south  of  Christiania  is  the  island  of 
Hanko,  a  fashionable  and  frequented  summer 


256  In  Viking  Land 

bathing  place,  with  numerous  fine  villas  and 
beautiful  pine  woods ;  and  still  nearer  the  city, 
on  the  banks  of  the  fjord,  is  Drobak,  another 
fashionable  watering  place  and  summer  pleas- 
ure-ground for  the  people  of  the  capital.  Here 
is  also  located  the  marine  biological  station  of 
the  university. 

To  the  north  of  the  capital  are  the  hills  of 
Holmenkollen,  the  winter  resort  of  Christiania. 
While  Norway  is  best  known  as  a  summer  ex- 
cursion ground  for  tourists,  Christiania  is  fast 
becoming  a  popular  winter  resort  for  those  in- 
terested in  such  out-door  sports  as  skiing, 
sledging,  skating,  tobogganing,  ice-pegging,  and 
the  like.  Concerning  the  winter  sports  an  en- 
thusiastic English  artist  writes:  "After  the 
first  heavy  fall  of  snow,  the  days  become  bright 
and  clear  and  blue  skies  prevail,  often  for  sev- 
eral weeks  in  succession.  The  air  is  here  fresh 
and  bracing,  and  the  five  hours  of  sunshine, 
during  even  the  shortest  days,  make  walking, 
sleighing,  and  ski-running  attractive  exercise. 
On  the  darkest  nights  of  mid-winter  the  sky 
is  palpitant  with  the  luminous  northern  lights 
—  the  aurora  borealis  —  which  stream  up  from 
behind  the  dark  mountains  in  prismatic  hues 
of  great  brilliance;  and  when  the  full  moon 


SKI  -  DRIVING. 


SKI  -  JUMPING. 


Christiania  the  Modern  Capital    257 

shines  on  the  sparkling  fjord  and  on  the  deep 
crisp  snow,  it  is  exhilarating  to  take  a  long 
sleigh  drive  over  the  frosty  roads  by  the  mar- 
gin of  the  fjord." 

The  ski,  or  Norwegian  snow-shoe,  furnishes 
the  widest  range  of  sport  for  the  votaries  of 
snow  and  ice.  Its  use  for  purposes  of  loco- 
motion is  very  ancient,  having  been  introduced 
into  Norway  in  pre-Christian  times  by  the 
Lapps.  The  ski  is  made  from  narrow  strips  of 
seasoned  ash  seven  or  eight  feet  long;  and  it 
is  widely  used  by  farmers,  lumbermen,  and 
soldiers,  as  well  as  by  sportsmen. 

Ski-jumping  is  one  of  the  favourite  winter 
amusements  at  Holmenkollen.  A  platform  is 
built  on  a  steep  hillside,  from  which  the  skier 
leaps  into  space,  balancing  himself  as  best  he 
can  with  outstretched  arms,  so  as  to  maintain 
an  upright  position  in  the  air.  After  a  flight 
of  a  few  seconds  he  alights  on  the  hinder  part 
of  the  ski  and  is  carried  down  the  hill  with  tre- 
mendous rapidity.  He  must,  however,  alight 
and  remain  in  an  upright  position.  Practised 
skiers  make  leaps  of  more  than  one  hundred 
feet. 

Ski-sailing  on  the  mountain  heaths  is  another 
unique  branch  of  ski  sports.  A  large  square 


258  In  Viking  Land 

sail  is  placed  between  the  skier  and  the  wind. 
Sometimes  as  many  as  three  persons  may  be 
drawn  by  the  same  sail.  If  the  wind  is  good 
and  the  ground  in  fair  condition,  a  ski-sailor 
will  easily  cover  from  eighty  to  one  hundred 
miles  in  a  day. 

Tobogganing  is  one  of  the  favourite  winter 
sports  on  the  Frogner  ridge  near  Christiania. 
The  Norwegian  toboggan  is  from  five  to  seven 
feet  long  and  a  foot  wide  and  slides  on  broad 
steel-shod  runners.  It  is  steered  by  the  person 
sitting  farthest  behind  by  means  of  a  pine  pole 
fifteen  feet  long.  This  pole  has  the  thickness 
of  the  wrist  at  the  end  held  and  it  gradually 
tapers  towards  the  end  that  trails  on  the 
ground  behind  the  toboggan. 

Hill-sliding  on  snow  skates  is  a  sport  that 
is  a  cross  between  sledging  and  skating.  The 
skates  are  miniature  sledge  runners  about  two 
feet  long  and  an  inch  broad  and  they  are 
strapped  to  the  foot  like  a  skate.  They  are 
used  chiefly  in  sliding  down  steep  hills,  although 
with  the  aid  of  the  sharp  pointed  ski-rods  they 
may  be  used  on  the  level  like  ordinary  skates. 

Ice-pegging  is  an  old  Norwegian  sport  that 
originated  among  the  fishermen  of  the  western 
fjords.  Besides  the  fishing-sledge,  two  short 


Christiania  the  Modern  Capital    259 

light  rods,  fitted  with  sharp  ice-spikes,  are  used 
as  propellers.  Ice-pegging  is  practised  not 
only  on  the  frozen  rivers,  lakes,  and  fjords,  but 
also  on  the  firm  crust  of  the  snow. 


NORSE   LETTERS   AND   HENRIK   IBSEN 

Origin  of  the  languages  and  literature  of  Scandinavia  —  Re- 
vived interest  in  the  old  Norse  —  The  ancient  runes  — 
Literary  influences  of  the  union  with  Denmark  —  Peder 
Dass  and  the  seventeenth  century  —  Union  with  Sweden 
and  literary  independence  —  Wergeland  and  Welhaven  — 
Norwegian  literature  to-day  —  Bjornson  —  His  romances, 
dramas,  and  personality  —  Henrik  Ibsen  —  Socialist  and 
psychologist  — "  Peer  Gynt "  and  Norwegian  peasant  life 
—  Ibsen's  art  —  "  Brand  "  —  Ibsen's  dramas  characterized  — 
Current  men  of  letters  —  Jonas  Lie  and  his  romances  —  The 
novelettes  of  Kielland  —  Heilberg  and  dramatic  literature 
—  The  bow  of  promise  of  Norwegian  literary  art. 

THE  old  Norse  language,  still  preserved  in 
Iceland  although  changed  in  the  matter  of  pro- 
nunciation, was  the  parent  of  the  languages 
of  Norway,  Sweden  and  Denmark.  Before  the 
year  800  the  Norse  was  spoken  thoughout  Scan- 
dinavia, but  after  that  date  it  was  gradually 
modified  in  Sweden  and  Denmark.  After  the 
Kalmar  union,  the  old  language  of  Norway  was 
relegated  to  the  rural  districts ;  and  the  profes- 
sional and  official  classes  adopted  the  Danish. 
This  has  given  the  two  nations  an  identical 

260 


Norse  Letters  and  Henrik  Ibsen   261 

literary  language ;  but  the  spoken  languages  of 
the  two  countries  differ  markedly.  The  pro- 
nunciation is  slower  than  in  Denmark  and  final 
letters  are  less  frequently  dropped. 

During  the  past  century  the  rapid  develop- 
ment of  national  feeling  has  aroused  keen  in- 
terest in  the  original  language  of  the  country. 
Ivar  Aason  was  the  father  of  the  new  move- 
ment. His  Norse  grammar  and  numerous  es- 
says on  the  old  Norse  folk  speech  gave  Norway 
a  proud  sense  of  linguistic  individuality.  After 
him,  the  sympathetic  portrayal  of  the  ideas  and 
aspirations  of  the  common  people,  in  the  writ- 
ings of  Jens  Tvedt,  helped  greatly  the  cause. 
Forty  years  ago  a  society  was  organized  for 
the  publication  of  useful  books  in  the  old 
language;  and  in  1885  the  national  parliament 
made  provision  for  the  publication  of  school 
books  in  the  Norse.  Philologists,  clergymen, 
and  students  have  added  interest  to  the  new 
linguistic  movement;  and  the  language,  which 
for  more  than  five  hundred  years  was  spoken 
only  by  peasants,  is  now  dignified  by  scholars 
and  promises  to  become  the  vehicle  of  a  new 
literature.  This  at  least  is  the  hope  of  every 
patriotic  Norwegian.  As  Bruun  has  remarked : 
' '  To  every  Norseman  this  should  be  a  burning 


262  In  Viking  Land 

question  —  that  his  mother-tongue,  compelled 
so  long  to  cede  its  place,  now  treasures  the  hope 
of  reinstatement." 

When  the  Norsemen  first  attempted  to  give 
expression  to  their  thoughts  they  did  so  by 
means  of  runes  cut  upon  wood  or  stone,  but  the 
viking  age,  during  the  eighth,  ninth,  and  tenth 
centuries,  modified  greatly  both  the  method  of 
writing  and  speaking  the  old  language.  It  was 
during  this  period  that  a  rich  literature  de- 
veloped, some  of  which  has  been  preserved  in 
collections  of  legends  illustrative  of  the  myth- 
ology of  Scandinavia.  Before  the  days  of 
bridge-whist,  the  Norsemen  cheered  the  gloom 
of  the  long  winter  nights  by  relating  the  ex- 
ploits of  their  gods  and  their  ancestors.  Sub- 
sequently the  recital  of  heroic  poems  and  eulo- 
gies was  delegated  to  professional  poets  and 
historiographers,  known  as  scalds.  The  poems 
of  the  eddas,  preserved  in  Iceland,  throw  a  flood 
of  light  not  only  on  the  early  literature  of 
Scandinavia,  but  also  on  the  ideals  and  habits 
of  the  people. 

The  result  of  the  union  with  Denmark  and 
the  Hanseatic  mercantile  power,  as  Brinch- 
mann  has  pointed  out,  gave  the  literature  and 
culture  of  Norway  a  Danish  and  north  German 


Norse  Letters  and  Henrik  Ibsen  263 

stamp.  With  the  Lutheran  reformation  the 
church  became  a  government  institution  and 
the  more  remunerative  positions  were  filled  by 
graduates  of  the  university  of  Copenhagen. 
Danish  became  the  language  of  the  church  as 
well  as  of  the  state,  and  the  Bible  which  the 
Lutherans  gave  to  the  people  was  in  Danish. 
It  was  only  in  law  that  the  native  language  of 
Norway  held  out  against  the  intrusion  of  the 
Danish. 

The  first  writer  of  consequence  during  the 
period  of  Danish  rule  was  Peder  Dass,  who 
lived  during  the  seventeenth  century  in  the 
winter  darkness  of  Nordland  with  the  sombre 
Atlantic  for  his  neighbour;  but  there  was 
brightness  in  his  nature  and  he  glorified  the 
scenery  and  the  life  of  the  cold  northland.  He 
turned  the  catechism  and  Bible  into  poetry  and 
his  writings  had  widespread  popularity.  Fol- 
lowing Dass  came  Ludwig  Holberg,  the  Moliere 
of  the  north  and  the  writer  of  more  than  a 
score  of  plays.  He  was  also  the  author  of  a 
long  series  of  popular  books  dealing  with  Nor- 
wegian and  Danish  history,  which  brought  the 
author  a  fortune  and  created  out  of  the  hith- 
erto uncultivated  Danish  tongue  "  a  rich  and 
ingenious  literary  language." 


264  In  Viking  Land 

The  literary  independence  of  Norway  came 
with  the  separation  from  Denmark  in  1814. 
Henceforth  Norwegian  authors,  while  continu- 
ing to  write  in  the  Dano-Norwegian,  felt  the 
impulse  of  the  national  movement.  Henrik 
"Wergeland  and  Johan  Sebastian  Welhaven 
were  the  leaders  of  the  literary  revival  that 
was  awakened  by  the  warmth  of  the  new  inde- 
pendence. Wergeland,  remarks  Chr.  Brinch- 
mann,  "  rushed  into  life,  intoxicated  with 
ecstasy  over  its  fulness,  a  youth  more  light  of 
heart  than  the  lightest  hearted,  and  yet  of  a 
deep  and  manly  intellect,  to  whom  existence 
revealed  its  seriousness  and  its  claim  to  the  de- 
votion of  the  whole  personality."  He  repre- 
sented the  best  aspirations  of  the  common  peo- 
ple and  very  properly  became  their  hero.  In 
the  fulness  of  his  heart  he  ' '  glorified  the  strug- 
gle for  liberty  in  poetic  cycles,  lashed  his  ad- 
versaries with  wild  farces,  blamed  the  authori- 
ties with  tempestuous  eloquence  for  their  weak 
national  feeling,  and  ardently  incited  his  coun- 
trymen to  free  themselves  entirely  from  the 
traditions  that  still  maintained,  through  their 
civil  servants,  the  old  dependence  on  Danish 
.culture." 

Welhaven,  on  the  contrary,  "  felt  his  severe 


Norse  Letters  and  Henrik  Ibsen   265 

taste  offended  by  the  noisy  national  move- 
ment "  led  by  Wergeland,  and  joined  the  bu- 
reaucrats, that  being  the  only  aristocracy  that 
Norway  possessed,  the  recent  constitutional 
convention  at  Eidsvold  having  abolished  the 
privileged  nobility.  In  his  "  Dawn  of  Nor- 
way ' '  he  laid  bare  the  vulgarity  and  selfishness 
of  democratic  aspirations  and  strongly  advo- 
cated a  more  gradual,  even,  and  continuous 
national  development,  and  the  necessary  de- 
pendence on  Danish  culture.  He  possessed 
larger  literary  ideals  and  a  finer  aesthetic  sense 
than  Wergeland,  but  he  influenced  less  pro- 
foundly the  subsequent  development  of  Nor- 
wegian letters;  for  it  was  Wergeland,  as 
Bjornson  has  somewhere  remarked,  who  was 
"  the  bright  tutelary  spirit  of  the  new  Nor- 
wegian poetry.  He  dreamed  all  the  dreams  of 
our  young  liberty." 

It  is,  however,  in  the  history  of  the  literature 
of  our  own  day  that  we  find  the  most  substan- 
tial Norse  contributions.  Bjornstjerne  Bjorn- 
son, still  living,  and  Henrik  Ibsen,  lately  de- 
ceased, represent  the  high-water  mark  in  Norse 
letters  and  enjoy  international  fame.  Bjorn- 
son, the  lesser  of  the  two  satellites,  is  best 
known  to  foreigners  as  the  novelist  of  the 


266  In  Viking  Land 

rough,  strenuous  life  of  the  Norwegian  peas- 
ants, although  he  has  written  many  dramas 
which  have  had  wide  vogue  in  Germany  and 
other  European  countries.  His  historical  plays 
include  "  Trilogy  on  Sigurd  Slembe,"  "  Be- 
tween the  Fights,"  "  Maria  Stuart,"  and 
"  Lame  Hulda,"  the  latter  a  semi-historical 
piece  interspersed  with  some  beautiful  lyrics. 
11  Labour,"  one  of  his  later  dramas,  is  of  the 
psychological  and  analytical  sort,  and  on  the 
technical  side,  at  least,  it  shows  striking  coinci- 
dences with  the  dramatic  formulas  invented  by 
Ibsen. 

It  is  in  such  romances  as  "  Synnove  Solbak- 
ken,"  "  Arne,"  "  The  Happy  Boy,"  and  "  The 
Fisher  Maiden  "  that  he  has  done  some  of  his 
best  work.  These  enchanting  pictures  of  the 
life  of  the  people,  together  with  his  numerous 
political  addresses,  have  a  distinct  smack  of 
the  soil  and  they  are  saturated  with  wholesome 
optimism.  Bjornson  has  been  in  the  thick  of 
the  great  national  struggle  which  resulted  three 
years  ago  in  the  rehabilitation  of  the  Norse 
kingdom,  and  he  has  been  prominently  identi- 
fied with  all  the  great  reform  movements  in  his 
country  during  the  past  half  century.  And, 
while  he  occupies  a  large  place  in  the  hearts  of 


HENRIK    IBSEN. 


Norse  Letters  and  Henrik  Ibsen   267 

his  countrymen  for  his  fearless  political  leader- 
ship, in  the  field  of  letters  he  is  clearly  outdis- 
tanced by  his  great  contemporary,  Henrik  Ib- 
sen. 

Concerning  the  personality  of  Bjornson  Mr. 
"William  E.  Curtis  writes :  * '  At  Aulestad,  as 
he  calls  his  country  place,  he  receives  many 
visitors  and  gives  friends  and  strangers  a  uni- 
form welcome.  They  take  him  as  he  is  without 
formality  or  ceremony,  and  whether  his  guest 
is  a  prince  or  a  peasant  there  is  no  difference 
in  the  form  of  entertainment  or  the  heartiness 
of  his  hospitality.  Bjornson's  great  heart  is  so 
comprehensive  that  it  admits  everyone  to  its 
embrace.  Although  he  has  a  large  income  from 
his  books  and  lectures,  he  has  never  been  able 
to  accumulate  money,  while  Ibsen,  whose  rev- 
enues have  not  been  so  great,  is  a  rich  man. 
"Whatever  Bjornson  has  not  wasted  on  his  farm 
he  has  given  to  the  poor  or  lost  through  his 
confidence  in  humanity."  In  spite  of  the  fact 
that  Bjornson's  daughter  married  Ibsen's  son, 
the  two  authors  have  never  been  friends.  It 
has  been  asserted  that  they  always  quarrelled 
when  they  came  together,  Bjornson  maintain- 
ing that  Ibsen  was  an  idiot  and  Ibsen  holding 


268  In  Viking  Land 

tenaciously  to  the  conviction  that  Bjornson  was 
an  ass. 

Probably  no  modern  author  has  been  more 
genuinely  abused  in  his  own  country  and  in 
foreign  lands  than  Henrik  Ibsen.  He  has  been 
described  as  an  egoist  and  a  bungler,  a  crazy 
fanatic,  consistently  dirty,  deplorably  immoral, 
and  eternally  groping  for  horrors  by  night  and 
blinking  like  a  stupid  owl.  His  dramas  have 
given  the  critics  the  shivers  and  his  admirers 
have  been  characterized  as  nasty-minded  peo- 
ple, lovers  of  literary  carrion,  and  muck  ferret- 
ing dogs.  Ibsen  is  distinctly  a  surgeon  of  souls 
and  as  such  he  is  unquestionably  the  first  psy- 
chological playwright  of  modern  times. 

He  warred  in  his  art  against  manifold  spirit- 
ual wrongs  —  hypocrisy,  stagnation  in  medi- 
ocrity and  mere  tradition,  the  arid  passion  for 
petty  criticism,  and  the  heaviness  of  a  small 
society  without  motion.  He  spoke  in  no  un- 
certain terms  on  the  great  social  questions  of 
the  day  —  the  labour  movement,  the  emancipa- 
tion of  women,  the  peace  question,  and  the  need 
of  awakened  responsibility  among  all  classes 
of  society.  It  was  his  profound  conviction  that 
the  wild  strife  for  republican  equality  in  Nor- 
way had  produced  a  people  who,  in  their  pri- 


Norse  Letters  and  Henrik  Ibsen   269 

vate  lives,  were  sordid,  selfish,  and  sexually  im- 
moral, and  in  their  public  lives  narrow,  self- 
interested,  conventional,  and  hypocritical. 

Certainly  the  picture  that  he  paints  of  the 
moral  forces  operating  in  Norway  is  anything 
but  lovely;  but  it  would  probably  be  as  unfair 
to  accept  Ibsen's  "  Peer  Gynt  "  as  typical  of 
Norse  peasant  life  as  to  regard  Zola's  "  La 
Terre  "  as  representative  of  life  in  the  French 
provinces.  Ibsen  is  not  merely  a  pessimist  and 
satirist,  but  a  social  reformer  who  deals  with 
living  truths  "  as  a  surgeon  deals  with  an  ulcer 
—  with  a  knife  and  a  hot  iron.  He  cuts  and 
cauterizes  the  vices  and  follies  of  society."  In 
"  A  Doll's  House  "  he  has  affirmed  the  human 
rights  of  women  in  marriage;  in  "  Ghosts  " 
the  terrible  consequences  of  heredity;  and  in 
"  An  Enemy  of  the  People  "  the  thankless  task 
of  attempting  to  repair  the  flaws  of  society. 
He  often  deals  with  delicate  topics  in  an  un- 
conventional manner,  but  his  viewpoint  is  al- 
ways that  of  the  moralist  and  the  social  re- 
former. 

Haldane  MacFall,  in  an  admirable  little  book 
on  the  significance  of  Ibsen's  art,  has  well  re- 
marked: "The  year  of  the  north  is  one  long 
day  and  one  long  night.  Out  of  the  bright, 


270  In  Viking  Land 

jocund  day  of  Norway,  amidst  the  scent  of 
flowers  and  the  blithe  singing  of  birds  was  born 
the  great-souled  Bjornson,  vikingesque,  of 
mighty  heart,  a  virile  giant,  vigorous,  trumpet- 
tongued,  believing  in  his  fellow  men.  Out  of 
the  long  black  night  of  her  winter  came  Henrik 
Ibsen,  blinking  owl-like;  out  of  the  solemn 
gloom  he  came,  a  brooding  figure,  tragic,  un- 
afraid; within  his  stern  will  a  rending  energy 
lurked,  that,  when  he  gave  it  tongue,  cracked 
and  rent  the  ground  of  untruth  on  which  the 
generations  had  trod.  Probing  into  the  dark 
places  of  the  human  soul,  he  plucked  the  cloak 
from  '  respectability, '  and  showed  the  drab  and 
shabby  make-believe  that  lurked  within;  and, 
in  the  doing,  proved  himself  the  supreme  satir- 
ist and  playwright  of  his  age." 

In  "  Brand  "  and  "  Peer  Gynt  "  he  aban- 
doned the  heroes  of  the  sagas,  with  which  he 
had  hitherto  occupied  his  dramatic  muse,  and 
flung  himself  into  the  unheroic  present,  assert- 
ing the  claims  of  an  unyielding  idealism  upon 
the  individual  to  be  himself  and  to  be  it 
throughout,  not  piecemeal  and  divided.  The 
scene  in  "  Brand  "  is  laid  in  a  bleak  mountain 
valley  "  where  the  snow  falls,  storms  grow  and 
threaten  and  rage,  glacier  and  snow  hold 


Norse  Letters  and  Henrik  Ibsen   271 

mighty  dangers  —  a  valley  into  which  the  life- 
giving  sun  shines  only  for  three  short  weeks  of 
the  long,  dreary  year,  and  that,  too,  only  on 
the  upper  walls  of  the  mountain's  sides  that 
hem  it  in  —  a  place  where  all  that  is  frail  and 
delicate  and  tender  sickens  and  dies.  Here 
neither  corn  nor  the  fruits  of  the  earth  ripen; 
and  famine  stalks  through  the  place  like  an 
eternal  curse."  The  village  mayor  is  a  man 
without  manhood,  a  well-meaning  person  devoid 
of  heroism  and  ideals ;  the  state-appointed  par- 
son has  no  real  care  for  the  welfare  of  his 
flock,  "  pointing  them  to  an  ideal  on  Sunday 
that  they  cannot  carry  out  in  their  work-a-day 
week  ";  the  schoolmaster  is  likewise  deadened 
by  current  officialism,  not  daring  to  be  himself; 
and  the  miserable  poor  folk,  who,  with  bitter 
labour,  "  filch  a  pittance  from  nature  in  her 
most  grudging  moods,"  are  lulled  to  inaptitude 
and  rank  materialism. 

"  Peer  Gynt,"  a  liar  and  a  rogue,  strutting 
as  a  hero  through  braggart  self-deception, 
personifies  the  pushing,  self-seeking,  wealth- 
pursuing  Norwegian  of  to-day.  It  angered  his 
countrymen,  for  they  regarded  it  as  a  satire 
on  national  peasant  life.  "  They  have  discov- 
ered much  more  satire  in  it  than  was  intended 


272  In  Viking  Land 

by  me,"  wrote  Ibsen,  "  why  can  they  not  read 
the  book  as  a  poem?  As  such  I  wrote  it."  But 
the  satire  was  probably  deserved,  even  though 
not  directly  intended. 

The  twenty-one  dramas  of  Ibsen  have  re- 
cently been  brought  out  in  America  by  the 
Scribners  in  eleven  volumes,  and  they  show  his 
large  grasp  of  deep  psychological  problems  and 
his  mastery  of  the  resources  of  the  stage.  In 
"  The  League  of  Youth  "  he  deals  with  the 
force  of  public  opinion  and  the  consequent 
dread  of  scandals  in  the  relations  of  the  sexes ; 
in  ' '  The  Pillars  of  Society  ' '  he  castigates  self- 
interested  individuals  who  enjoy  the  confidence 
of  the  community  and  promote  public  schemes 
to  feather  their  own  pockets;  in  "  The  Wild 
Duck  "  he  satirizes  the  unequal  severity  with 
which  women  are  punished  for  sexual  sins; 
"  Eosmersholm  "  deals  with  the  sordid  nature 
of  local  politicians,  and  "  Hedda  Grabler  ': 
with  the  self-absorption  of  the  typical  girl  of 
the  period. 

These  and  a  dozen  similar  "  hypocrisies  and 
the  narrow  ways  of  the  sordid  wayfaring  that 
respectability  has  narrowed  within  the  meagre 
hedge  of  lies  and  humbug  which  hem  the  silted 
and  mean  path  of  the  convention-ridden 


Norse  Letters  and  Henrik  Ibsen   273 

world  "  Ibsen  has  had  the  temerity  to  discuss 
with  characteristic  frankness.  Best  of  all,  his 
dramas  are  always  dramas  with  ideas.  One  of 
his  critics  has  truly  said:  "  Like  the  old  sea- 
dogs  of  whom  he  came  —  and  they  left  their 
mark  upon  his  features  and  his  soul  —  he  was 
a  stubborn  fighter.  Peace  he  held  as  not  the 
most  desirable  condition;  the  warfare  of 
strenuous  living  was  the  more  healthy  for  man. 
His  eyes  were  the  watchful  eyes  of  the  sailor 
folk,  at  constant  guard  for  the  threat  of  dan- 
ger that  may  leap  forth  on  every  hand  —  out 
of  the  summer  sky  above,  or  the  calm  waters 
beneath,  or  from  out  the  seething  hell  of  the 
black,  bewildering  tempest  —  ever  ready  for 
war  with  the  elements  without.  So  did  he  keep 
ward  against  the  elements  of  weaknesses 
within. ' ' 1 

Among  the  more  recent  authors  may  be  men- 
tioned Jonas  Lie,  a  prolific  writer  on  the  habits 
and  customs  of  the  Norwegian  people;  Mrs. 
Alvide  Prydz,  the  foremost  woman  novelist, 
several  of  whose  romances  have  been  translated 
into  English,  German,  and  Eussian;  Alexander 
Kielland,  the  author  of  a  series  of  enchanting 


1  Haldane  MacFall:    Ibsen:    the  Man,  his  Art,  and  his  Sig- 
nificance.    London,  1907.    pp.  336. 


274  In  Viking  Land 

novelettes;  Arne  Garborg,  a  writer  of  melodi- 
ous verses  and  firm  sketches;  Ivar  Mortenson, 
a  lyric  poet  and  dreamer;  Camilla  Collet,  the 
novelist  who  has  championed  energetically  the 
emancipation  of  women;  Amalie  Skram,  whose 
novels  are  of  the  unsavoury  naturalist  sort; 
and  Fridtjof  Nansen,  the  explorer,  statesman, 
and  author  of  scientific  works. 

Concerning  the  writers  of  later  date  than 
Ibsen  and  Bjornson,  and  with  special  reference 
to  the  recently  deceased  Jonas  Lie,  Brinch- 
mann  writes:  "  The  awakening  of  realism  in 
the  sixties  gradually  brought  forth  a  fresh 
series  of  talented  authors.  Bjornson 's  peasant 
romances  had  already  found  successors  in 
Magdelena  Thoresen  and  Kristofer  Janson. 
The  latter,  however,  soon  devoted  himself  to 
the  preaching  of  Unitarianism,  and  was  for 
ten  years  a  preacher  among  his  countrymen 
in  North  America.  While  this  awakening  ex- 
clusively, so  far  as  Ibsen  was  concerned,  and 
in  Bjornson 's  case,  at  any  rate  mainly,  bene- 
fited the  drama,  it  reached  the  field  of  romance 
through  their  contemporary  in  age  and  art, 
Jonas  Lie,  at  about  the  same  time.  With  his 
somewhat  tardy  debut  as  an  author  in  1870, 
he  at  once  won  the  Norwegian  literary  world 


Norse  Letters  and  Henrik  Ibsen  275 

by  his  delightful  novel,  '  The  Visionary,'  and 
followed  up  his  victory  by  a  series  of  fresh, 
every-day  descriptions,  some  from  Nordland 
— l  The  Three-master  Future  '  —  some  from 
sea-lif e  — '  The  Pilot  and  his  Wife,'  'Rut- 
land,' and  '  Go  Ahead.'  The  intuitive  sense 
for  the  psychological  which  was  apparent  even 
here,  attained  its  full  development  when  he  at 
length  discovered  the  happy  knack  of  convert- 
ing into  an  artistic  form  the  manifold  experi- 
ences he  had  acquired  before  his  debut,  by  per- 
sonal participation  in  the  speculations  of  the 
promoter  period,  right  up  to  the  crash.  In  a 
long  series  of  impressionistically  life-like  pic- 
tures, he  paints  his  careful  observations  of  the 
vital  processes  of  family  and  society  — '  One 
of  Life's  Slaves,'  '  The  Gilje  Family,'  '  A 
Whirlpool,'  '  The  Commodore's  Daughters,' 
'  A  Conjugal  Union,'  '  Evil  Powers,'  and 
'  When  the  Sun  Goes  Down.'  Calmly  and 
without  delusion,  he  looks  upon  the  ways  of 
mankind;  but  in  Jonas  Lie  we  find,  instead  of 
the  frigidity  of  contemporary  naturalism,  the 
intelligent  sympathy  of  a  warm  nature,  and 
the  humour  of  a  cheerful  mind  that  speaks  to 
the  heart." 

Warmth  and  good  nature  likewise  charac- 


276  In  Viking  Land 

terized  the  sketches  of  Alexander  Kielland. 
According  to  the  historian  of  contemporary 
Norse  literature  already  quoted,  the  great 
charm  of  Kielland 's  descriptions  "  lies  in  the 
masterly  way  in  which  he  handles  his  language, 
the  well  balanced  verve  of  a  man  of  the  world. 
One  after  another,  this  author,  whose  maturity 
was  evident  from  the  very  first,  sent  out  a 
series  of  enchanting  novelettes  and  excellent 
novels  —  'Work  People,'  'Else,'  'Skipper 
Worse,'  and  '  Poison.'  '  Both  Lie  and  Kiel- 
land  tried  their  hands  at  dramatic  literature, 
but  the  field  was  so  entirely  occupied  by  Bjorn- 
son  and  Ibsen,  that  neither  attained  distinction 
in  this  department  of  letters. 

More  than  local  success,  however,  has  re- 
cently come  to  Gunnar  Heilberg  as  a  play- 
right.  "  King  Midas,"  "  Artists,"  "  Gert's 
Garden,"  "The  Balcony,"  and  "The  Great 
Lottery  Prize  "  are  characterized  by  compe- 
tent critics  as  masterpieces  in  dramatic  art. 
More  recently  he  has  written  comedies  after 
the  classic  models  of  Aristophanes,  in  which 
he  has  caricatured  the  politicians  and  the 
press.  A  Norse  writer  says  of  his  dramas: 
"  A  cuttingly  keen  intelligence  sparkles  out 
everywhere,  and  a  merciless  comprehension  of 


Norse  Letters  and  Henrik  Ibsen  277 

every  detail  that  raises  dissension  among  peo- 
ple with  nerves." 

While  most  of  the  younger  writers  are  not 
known  in  England  and  America,  it  seems  more 
than  likely  that  Gamle  Norge  has  more  than 
her  share  of  the  rainbow  of  literary  promise, 
and  that  from  among  the  sombre  fjords  and 
the  bleak  f  jelds  of  Viking  Land  one  may  expect 
during  the  century  that  is  before  us  more  gi- 
ants of  the  Ibsen  sort. 


FOLK-MUSIC    AND    EDVARD    GRIEG 

Origin  of  Norwegian  folk-songs  —  How  they  typify  the  coun- 
try —  Significance  of  the  epics  —  Ancient  musical  instru- 
ments —  The  Hardanger  violin,  the  lur,  and  the  langeleik  — • 
Rhythms  of  the  national  dances  —  Ole  Bull  and  national 
music  —  Labours  of  Kjerulf,  Nordraak,  Winter-Hjelm,  and 
Christian  Sinding  —  Women  composers  —  Edvard  Grieg  the 
greatest  of  Norwegian  creative  tone-artists  —  His  early 
training  and  studies  in  Germany  —  Wide  range  of  his  com- 
positions —  The  national  element  of  his  music  —  Pianoforte 
compositions  —  Grieg's  lyric  art-songs  —  Orchestral  and 
chamber-music  —  Place  of  Grieg  in  the  history  of  music  — 
Concert  virtuosi  —  Norwegian  pianists  —  Choral  socities  and 
music  festivals  —  The  Norwegian  Musical  Union. 

IF  the  dwellers  of  the  deep  fjords,  the  sombre 
fir-clad  mountain  valleys,  and  the  bleak  ice- 
fields do  not  "  open  their  lips  so  readily  for 
song  "  as  the  people  of  southern  lands  where 
the  sun  creates  an  eternal  spring,  it  is  not  be- 
cause they  are  without  lyric  power  as  is  clearly 
apparent  from  the  rich  and  varied  folk-songs 
and  the  splendid  creative  work  of  Edvard 
Grieg. 

The   Norwegian   folk-songs,    spring   dances, 

278 


Folk-music  and  Edvard  Grieg     279 

ballings,  and  wedding  marches  have  been  well 
characterized  as  the  outpourings  of  the  inner 
lives  of  the  common  people,  the  expression  of 
their  dauntless  energy,  their  struggles  and 
aspirations.  The  folk-song  of  Norway,  more 
than  in  any  other  land,  embodies  the  character 
and  expresses  the  tendencies  of  viking  life, 
ancient  and  modern.  It  bears  the  unmistakable 
marks  of  the  weal  and  woe  of  Norse  life,  the 
strongly  marked  and  regularly  introduced 
rhythms  of  the  developed  and  developing  na- 
tional character.  And  while  an  undercurrent 
of  melancholy  runs  through  most  of  it,  it  is, 
after  all,  the  faithful  interpreter  of  the  lives 
of  isolated  and  solitary  occupants  of  fjords, 
f  jelds,  and  dalen. 

The  folk-songs  of  Norway  are  singularly 
typical  of  the  country  and  its  inhabitants. 
Some  "  seem  to  take  us  into  the  dense  forest 
among  mocking  echoes  from  the  life  outside; 
others  show  us  the  trolls  tobogganing  down  the 
highest  peaks  of  Norway;  in  some  we  feel 
human  souls  hovering  above  the  reefs;  in 
others,  memories  of  the  old  sun-lit  land  flit  be- 
fore us;  but  in  none  do  we  meet  with  senti- 
mentalism,  despondency,  or  disconsolateness." 
But  with  their  weird  and  minor  strains,  and 


280  In  Viking  Land 


their  odd  jumps  from  low  tones  to  high,  on  first 
acquaintance  they  strike  the  hearer  as  strange 
and  elusive. 

Some  of  the  epic  songs,  as  in  Telemarken, 
are  of  great  antiquity.  But  it  was  not  until 
the  last  century  that  Norse  tone  artists  discov- 
ered the  wealth  that  had  long  been  cherished 
by  the  peasants  of  the  fjords  and  mountain 
valleys.  Lindeman  (1812-1887)  was  the  first 
to  recognize  the  musical  significance  of  Nor- 
wegian folk-songs.  He  collected  many  hundred 
national  ballads,  hymns,  and  dances  and  called 
attention  to  their  richness  and  variety  as 
thematic  material  for  a  school  of  national 
music.  In  Lindeman 's  collection  will  be  found 
songs  which  tell  of  the  heroic  exploits  of  old 
Norse  vikings,  kings,  and  earls  of  the  heathen 
days  of  Thor  and  Odin,  together  with  lyrics, 
deep  and  ardent,  which  sing  of  the  loves,  the 
joys  and  the  sorrows  of  the  humbler  Chris- 
tian folks. 

The  Hardanger  violin,  the  lur  and  the  lange- 
leik  have  played  a  leading  role  in  the  develop- 
ment of  Norwegian  folk-songs  and  dances. 
The  Hardanger  instrument  is  more  arched  than 
the  ordinary  violin ;  there  are  four  strings  over 
the  finger-board  and  four  underneath,  the  lat- 


Folk-music  and  Edvard  Grieg     281 

ter  of  fine  steel  wire,  acting  as  sympathetic 
strings.  The  men  of  the  Hardanger  fjord 
have  long  been  distinguished  for  the  workman- 
ship and  tonal  qualities  of  their  violins,  and 
with  them  the  peasants  have  improvised  the 
rich  and  varied  impressions  of  nature  which 
we  find  embodied  in  the  folk-songs.  The  lur 
is  a  long  wooden  instrument  of  the  trumpet 
order  and  is  usually  made  of  birch  bark.  It  is 
much  used  in  the  mountains.  The  langeleik, 
or  Norwegian  harp,  is  a  long,  narrow,  box-like 
stringed  instrument,  something  of  the  char- 
acter of  the  ancient  zither.  It  has  seven 
strings  and  sound  holes,  but  its  tone  is  weak 
and  monotonous. 

The  national  dances  of  Norway  have  bold 
rhythms  which  at  once  arrest  the  attention. 
Perhaps  the  most  characteristic  is  the  hailing, 
a  solo  dance  in  two-fourth  time.  It  is  usually 
danced  by  young  men  in  country  barns  and  its 
most  striking  feature  is  the  kicking  of  the 
beam  of  the  ceiling.  In  the  story  of  Nils  the 
fiddler  in  his  novel  Arne,  Bjb'rnson  has  given 
this  account  of  the  hailing :  * '  The  music  struck 
up,  a  deep  silence  followed,  and  he  began.  He 
dashed  forward  along  the  floor,  his  body  in- 
clining to  one  side,  half  aslant,  keeping  time 


282  In  Viking  Land 

to  the  fiddle.  Crouching  down  he  balanced 
himself,  now  on  one  foot,  now  on  the  other, 
flung  his  legs  crosswise  under  him,  sprang  up 
again,  and  then  moved  on  aslant  as  before. 
The  fiddle  was  handled  by  skilful  fingers  and 
more  and  more  fire  was  thrown  into  the  tune. 
Nils  threw  his  head  back  and  suddenly  his 
boot  heel  touched  the  beam." 

The  spring  dance  is  less  vigorous  but  more 
graceful  than  the  hailing.  It  is  a  round  dance 
in  three-quarter  time  in  which  two  persons,  or 
groups  of  two,  participate.  It  is  danced  with 
a  light  springing  step  and  has  been  compared 
with  the  mazurka  by  Liszt.  Like  the  hailing, 
however,  it  is  markedly  individual  in  its  pleas- 
ing combinations  of  tones.  Forestier  says  of 
the  spring  dance  of  Norway:  "  There  is  a 
freshness,  a  sparkle,  an  energy,  a  graceful  life 
about  it  that  is  invigorating." 

If  Lindeman  was  the  first  to  collect  folk- 
songs and  dances  in  Norway,  Ole  Bull  (1810- 
1880)  was  the  first  to  popularize  them.  He 
was,  as  Grieg  once  declared,  a  pathbreaker  for 
the  young  national  music.  At  the  early  age 
of  nineteen  he  sallied  forth  with  his  fiddle,  and 
wherever  he  appeared  in  Europe  and  America 
he  played  the  folk-music  and  national  dances  of 


Folk-music  and  Edvard  Grieg     283 

Norway.  The  favour  which  he  found  encour- 
aged his  countrymen.  His  brilliant  career 
glorified  musical  Norway ;  gave  it  confidence  to 
assert  itself,  and  served  as  the  inspiration  of 
a  long  list  of  creative  tone  artists  —  Kjerulf, 
Nordraak,  Grieg,  Svendsen,  Winter-Hjelm, 
Binding,  and  Behrens  —  to  write  out  and  ar- 
range for  voice  and  modern  instruments  the 
music  that  had  so  long  been  preserved  in  the 
memories  of  the  people. 

The  best  art-music  of  Norway  has  been  built 
upon  the  folk-songs  and  dances  of  the  common 
people.  Half  dan  Kjerulf  (1815-1868)  was  the 
first  serious  composer  of  the  new  art  school. 
He  lived  during  the  trying  period  of  Nor- 
wegian storm  and  stress,  but  he  wrote  some- 
thing like  a  hundred  compositions,  and  in  his 
songs  is  found  "  the  bud  of  national  feeling 
which  has  burst  into  full  bloom  in  Grieg." 

Richard  Nordraak  (1842-1866),  during  his 
brief  career,  set  music  to  several  of  Bjornson's 
plays  and  composed  some  strong  pianoforte 
pieces  and  songs.  "  He  was,"  says  Siewers, 
"  a  man  with  a  bold  fresh  way  of  looking  at 
things,  strong  artistic  interests,  an  untiring 
love  of  work,  and  deep  national  feeling.  He 
had  a  decided  influence  upon  his  friend  Grieg's 


284  In  Viking  Land 

artistic  views,  and  he  is  the  connecting  link  be- 
tween Kjerulf  and  Grieg  in  the  chain  of  Nor- 
wegian musical  art." 

Otto  Winter-Hjelm,  who,  with  Grieg,  at- 
tempted to  establish  a  conservatory  of  music 
at  Christiania  after  their  return  from  Ger- 
many in  the  sixties,  contributed  much  to  the 
development  of  the  national  art  of  Norway  by 
his  excellent  arrangements  of  hallings  and 
spring  dances  for  piano  and  violin.  Thomas 
Thellefsen  (1823-1874),  a  pupil  and  friend  of 
Chopin,  was  distinguished  as  a  national  com- 
poser as  well  as  a  pianist,  and  Karl  F.  E.  Neu- 
pert  (1842-1888),  who  lived  in  America  six 
years,  did  much  by  his  concert  tours  and  teach- 
ing to  dignify  Norse  music. 

Johan  Severin  Svendsen,  while  a  Norwegian 
by  birth  and  training,  has  expatriated  himself 
by  his  long  residence  in  Denmark.  So  far  as 
his  compositions  have  national  flavour  they  are 
German.  Johan  Selmer,  while  a  prolific  com- 
poser, will  probably  be  best  remembered  as  a 
conductor.  Christian  Sinding,  after  Grieg,  is 
the  best  known  Norwegian  composer.  His  pro- 
ductions range  from  symphonies  and  sym- 
phonic poems  through  chamber  music  to 
romances.  He  is  credited  with  a  wide  range 


Folk-music  and  Edvard  Grieg     285 

of  musical  ideas,  deep  artistic  earnestness,  and 
bold  power  of  expression;  but  his  composi- 
tions in  the  larger  forms  are  thought  unduly 
noisy  and  restless. 

Two  women  who  have  helped  to  make  the 
music  history  of  Norway  are  Agatha  Backer- 
Grondahl  and  Catharinus  Elling.  Mrs.  Backer- 
Grondahl  was  a  pupil,  first  of  Kjerulf  and 
Winter-Hjelm,  and  later  of  Kullak,  Hans  von 
Biilow,  and  Liszt.  Many  of  her  songs  and  in- 
strumental pieces  display  fine  artistic  feeling 
and  musical  scholarship  of  no  mean  order. 
Catharinus  Elling  has  ventured  into  the  larger 
fields  of  music-forms  and  has  produced  operas, 
symphonies,  and  oratorios,  as  well  as  chamber 
music  and  songs.  Her  music  drama  "  The 
Cossacks  "  is  her  most  ambitious  work. 

Says  Henry  T.  Finck,  an  able  American 
music  critic:  "  When  I  had  revelled  in  the 
music  of  Chopin  and  Wagner,  Liszt  and  Franz, 
to  the  point  of  intoxication,  I  fancied  that  the 
last  word  had  been  said  in  harmony  and 
melody;  when  lo!  I  came  across  the  songs  and 
piano  pieces  of  Grieg,  and  once  more  found 
myself  moved  to  tears  of  delight."1  Edvard 

1  For  an  excellent  account  of  Grieg's  art,  see  Mr.  Finck's 
interesting  little  book:  Edvard  Grieg.  London,  1906.  pp.  130. 


286  In  Viking  Land 

Grieg  (1843-1907)  undoubtedly  occupies  the 
foremost  place  among  Norwegian  composers. 
He  is  the  highest  representative  of  the  Norse 
element  in  music,  "  the  great  beating  heart  of 
Norwegian  musical  art." 

On  the  paternal  side  Grieg  is  of  Scotch  an- 
cestry, his  grandfather  haying  fled  from  the 
Highlands  to  Bergen  after  the  unequal  strug- 
gle between  the  English  and  Charles  Edward 
Stuart,  the  Pretender.  The  lad 's  musical  gifts, 
however,  seem  directly  attributable  to  his 
gifted  Norwegian  mother.  She  was  a  musician 
of  some  distinction  and  she  gave  Edvard  his 
first  piano  lessons  at  the  early  age  of  six  years. 
More  important  than  these  early  lessons,  re- 
marks Mr.  Finck,  "  was  the  musical  atmos- 
phere he  was  enabled  to  breathe  at  home.  A 
boy  who  is  destined  to  become  a  great  genius 
can  easily  teach  himself,  but  nothing  can  atone 
for  the  lack  of  that  musical  nutriment  in  child- 
hood and  youth  which  builds  the  very  tissues 
of  that  part  of  the  brain  which  is  set  aside  for 
musical  impressions.  Mrs.  Grieg  not  only 
played  a  great  deal  en  famille,  but  once  a  week 
she  invited  those  of  her  friends  who  were  fond 
of  the  art  to  a  musical  soiree.  On  such  occa- 
sions the  place  of  honour  was  usually  given  to 


MRS.    BACKER  -  GRONDAHL. 


Folk-music  and  Edvard  Grieg     287 

Mozart  and  Weber,  from  whose  operas  selec- 
tions were  performed,  the  hostess  playing  the 
orchestral  parts  on  the  pianoforte,  and  on 
occasions  also  assuming  a  vocal  role  to  com- 
plete the  cast.  In  a  corner  of  the  room  sat  a 
happy  boy  listening  to  this  music." 

As  a  result  of  the  solicitations  of  Ole  Bull, 
who  was  the  first  to  recognize  the  lad's  excep- 
tional promise,  Grieg's  parents  were  induced 
to  send  him  to  Germany  for  further  study.  He 
entered  the  conservatory  at  Leipzig  at  the  age 
of  fifteen;  studied  the  pianoforte  under  Mos- 
chels  and  Wenzel,  and  counterpoint,  compo- 
sition, and  instrumentation  under  Hauptmann, 
Eichter,  and  Beinecke.  In  1863  he  located  at 
Copenhagen  where  he  studied  for  a  time  with 
Gade;  and  four  years  later  he  began  his  musi- 
cal career  in  Norway,  first  as  a  teacher  and 
concert  artist,  and  from  1871  to  1877  with 
Svendsen  as  director  of  the  musical  union  at 
Christiania.  He  was  awarded  a  small  life  an- 
nuity by  the  Norwegian  government  in  1874, 
and  in  1877  he  retired  to  his  home  at  Bergen 
where  he  devoted  the  last  thirty  years  of  his 
life  to  composition.1 

1  See  an  interesting  article  by  Grieg,  "  My  First  Success,"  in 
the  Westminster  Review  for  July,  1905,  Vof.  88,  pp.  36-52. 


288  In  Viking  Land 

As  a  creative  tone  artist  Grieg  was  many 
sided;  he  wrote  imperishable  songs,  splendid 
piano  pieces,  and  strong  and  stirring  orchestral 
numbers ;  but  the  aspect  of  his  work  which  has 
won  largest  appreciation  for  his  art  at  home 
and  abroad  is  the  distinctly  individual  and 
national  character  of  his  music.  Professor 
Wergeland  remarks  in  this  connection:  "  Of 
all  the  Norwegian  composers  of  national  music, 
none  has  touched  as  Grieg  has,  the  spring  of 
the  idiomatically  national.  The  mountain 
fairy,  of  whom  Norwegian  folk-lore  tells;  the 
mysterious  spirit  of  the  voices  of  the  forest  and 
the  silence  of  the  glen;  the  golden-haired  and 
blue-eyed  maiden,  muse  of  the  peasants  and  in- 
spirer  of  their  lays,  she  who  appears  in  the 
solitude  and  plays  the  lur  and  the  langeleik, 
of  whom  the  poets  have  sung  eloquently  but 
abstractly,  —  she  revealed  herself  at  last  in  her 
eerie  power,  when  Grieg  took  these  '  boorish  ' 
tunes  and  lent  them  a  voice  that  could  reach 
further  than  the  first  vibration  and  whispering 
of  her  fantastic  zither.  Thus  Norwegian  peas- 
ant music  has  reached  a  development  which  it 
could  not  otherwise  get,  has  become  what  it  is 
now  —  bizarre,  often  morbid,  sometimes  bois- 
terously gay,  full  of  wild  grace,  taunting  and 


Folk-music  and  Edvard  Grieg     289 

jeering,  yet  plaintive  and  brooding,  always 
singularly  forceful  and  brilliant.  Norwegians 
did  not  realize  what  possibilities  were  in  them 
or  their  songs  until  Grieg  put  his  hand  to  the 
elaboration  of  these  tunes." 

Some  German  critics  have  pointed  out  that 
the  element  of  nationalism  is  too  pronounced 
in  Grieg's  music,  meaning  of  course  that  the 
Norse  rather  than  the  German  element  has 
been  made  prominent.  They  assert  that  he  has 
seized  upon  the  narrow  field  of  folk-song  and 
dance  as  a  convenient  vehicle  for  personal 
peculiarities  and  that  he  speaks  in  a  dialect 
rather  than  in  the  universal  language  of  music. 
It  must  be  admitted  that  Grieg's  art  represents 
a  healthy  reaction  against  foreign  influence  in 
Norway  and  that  his  music  "  smacks  of  the 
soil."  In  his  elaboration  of  primitive  harmo- 
nies, his  artistic  treatment  of  national  melodies 
and  dance  rhythms,  and  their  uses  as  motives  in 
great  and  enduring  musical  structures,  Grieg 
has  dared  offend  the  taste  of  a  class  of  critics 
who  maintain  that  real  music  must  never  strike 
the  personal  or  national  note  but  must  be  the 
vague  and  indefinite  expression  of  generalities, 
what  Carlyle  once  characterized  as  "  atten- 
uated cosmopolitanism." 


290  In  Viking  Land 

In  reply  to  the  German  critics,  Professor 
Wergeland  1  very  properly  says:  "Music,  as 
the  fluctuating  expression  of  man's  moods,  can 
hardly  be  restricted  to  any  formula  or  domain 
of  utterance.  This  would  be  to  deprive  it  of 
its  greatest  virtue,  that  of  being  responsive 
and  sympathetic  to  all  phases  of  life,  to  all 
shades  of  sentiment.  In  the  end,  does  not  our 
choice  depend  upon  our  individual  disposition, 
and  does  not  all  music  begin,  in  its  expression 
as  well  as  in  its  appreciation,  with  the  indi- 
vidual? If  the  artist  pictures  the  elusive  things 
we  call  life,  with  its  thousand  mirages,  or  the 
majestic  mountain  top,  where  the  cool  blue 
visions  tell  of  immovable  heights,  even  more 
sublime,  who  shall  say  which  is  the  more 
perfect?  " 

Henry  T.  Finck  remarks  in  the  same  con- 
nection :  ' '  When  a  German  fancies  that  his 
country  owns  the  world-language  of  music,  one 
may  pardon  him,  for  national  vanity  is  a  uni- 
versal folly ;  but  when  one  who  is  not  a  German 
parrots  this  nonsense  about  '  dialects,'  it  is 
time  to  protest.  Dialect  signifies  a  provincial 
mode  of  speaking  a  language.  What  is  Nor- 

1  See  his  article  "  Grieg  as  a  National  Composer,"  in  the 
North  American  Review,  for  September,  1902,  Vol.  175,  pp. 
370-377. 


Folk-music  and  Edvard  Grieg     291 

way  a  province  of,  musically  or  otherwise?  ' 
Certainly  not  of  Germany. 

Grieg's  genere  pieces  represent  the  pearls  of 
his  compositions.  The  arrangements  of  folk- 
songs and  dances  for  the  piano  in  "  Pictures 
of  Popular  Life  "  (opus  19)  are  characterized 
by  consummate  lyric  skill;  and  Ole  Bull  once 
declared  that  they  were  the  finest  representa- 
tions of  Norse  life  that  had  been  attempted. 
Grieg  wrote  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  songs, 
most  of  which  take  high  rank.  Finck  is  of  the 
opinion  that  fewer  fall  below  par  than  in  the 
list  of  any  other  song  writer.  He  adds:  "  I 
myself  believe  that  Grieg  in  some  of  his  songs 
equals  Schubert  at  his  best;  indeed,  I  think 
he  should  and  will  be  ranked  ultimately  as 
second  to  Schubert  only;  but  it  is  in  his  later 
works  that  he  rises  to  such  heights,  not  in  the 
earliest  ones,  in  which  he  was  still  a  little 
afraid  to  rely  on  his  own  wings." 

When  it  is  recalled  that  Grieg  was  a  pianist 
of  exceptional  merit,  the  large  place  occupied 
by  pianoforte  pieces  —  twenty-eight  of  the 
seventy-three  opus  numbers  —  is  easily  under- 
stood. Grieg's  piano  compositions,  like  those 
of  Edward  MacDowell,  are  brief,  but  they  are 
veritable  musical  gems.  The  Jumbo  idea  in 


292  In  Viking  Land 

music  still  lingers  with  minor  professionals. 
They  shrug  their  shoulders,  remarks  Finck, 
and  exclaim:  "  Yes,  that  humming  bird  is  very 
beautiful,  but  of  course  it  cannot  be  ranked 
as  high  as  an  ostrich.  Don't  you  see  how 
small  it  is?  ' 

Grieg  composed  nine  works  for  the  orches- 
tra; and  here,  as  in  lyric  art-songs  and  piano- 
forte pieces,  he  reveals  himself  as  a  consum- 
mate master  in  painting  delicate  yet  glowing 
colours.  The  music  which  he  set  to  Ibsen's 
"  Peer  Gynt  "  brought  him  the  largest  meas- 
ure of  fame  as  an  orchestral  composer.  Indeed, 
it  was  more  cordially  received  than  the  drama, 
as  is  indicated  by  this  criticism  by  Hanslick: 
"  Perhaps  in  a  few  years  Ibsen's  '  Peer  Gynt  ' 
will  live  only  through  Grieg's  music,  which,  to 
my  taste,  has  more  poetry  and  artistic  intelli- 
gence in  every  number  than  the  whole  five-act 
monstrosity  of  Ibsen."  Among  other  notable 
orchestral  and  chamber  music  numbers  may 
be  mentioned  a  setting  of  Bjornson's  "  Sigurd 
the  Crusader,"  "  Bergliot,"  based  upon  the 
sagas  of  the  Norse  kings,  a  suite  composed  for 
the  two  hundredth  anniversary  of  the  birth  of 
Ludwig  Holberg,  and  a  number  of  choice  cham- 
ber music  pieces. 


Folk-music  and  Edvard  Grieg     293 

In  closing,  it  may  be  remarked  that  Edvard 
Grieg  has  not  only  given  Norway  a  conspicu- 
ous place  on  the  map  of  musical  Europe,  but 
that  he  has  influenced  unmistakably  composers 
of  the  rank  of  Tschaikowsky,  the  Russian 
Paderewski,  the  Pole,  Eugene  d 'Albert,  the 
Scotch-English-German,  Eichard  Strauss,  the 
German,  and  our  own  lamented  Edward  Mac- 
Dowell,  the  American,  the  sense  of  whose  loss 
is  still  so  fresh  upon  us.  "  From  every  point 
of  view  that  interests  the  music  lover,"  says 
Mr.  Finck,  "  Grieg  is  one  of  the  most  original 
geniuses  in  the  musical  world  of  the  present 
or  past.  His  songs  are  a  mine  of  melody,  sur- 
passed in  wealth  only  by  Schubert's,  and  that 
only  because  there  are  more  of  Schubert's.  In 
originality  of  harmony  and  modulation  he  has 
only  six  equals :  Bach,  Schubert,  Chopin,  Schu- 
mann, Wagner,  and  Liszt.  In  rhythmic  inven- 
tion and  combination  he  is  inexhaustible,  and 
as  orchestrator  he  ranks  among  the  most  fas- 
cinating. To  speak  of  such  a  man  —  seven- 
eighths  of  whose  works  are  still  music  of  the 
future  —  as  a  writer  of  '  dialect,'  is  surely  the 
acme  of  unintelligence.  If  Grieg  did  stick  to 
the  fjord  and  never  get  out  of  it,  even  a  Ger- 
man ought  to  thank  heaven  for  it.  Grieg  in 


294  In  Viking  Land 

a  fjord  is  much  more  picturesque  and  more  in- 
teresting to  the  world  than  he  would  have  been 
in  the  Elbe  or  the  Spree." 

While  Norway  has  neither  permanent  opera 
nor  permanent  orchestras,  she  has  produced 
concert  virtuosi  of  a  high  order.  Ole  Bull,  the 
so-called  violin-king,  already  referred  to,  was 
unsurpassed  in  his  day.  Among  piano  artists 
may  be  named  the  talented  composer  Mrs.  Ag- 
atha Backer-Grondahl,  Thomas  Thellefsen,  Ed- 
mund Neupert,  Martin  Knutzen,  and  the  great 
composer  Edvard  Grieg.  The  flutist  Olaf 
Svenssen  and  the  vocal  artists  Thorvald  Lam- 
mers,  Ingeborg  Oselio-Bjornson,  and  Ellen 
Gulbranson  have  also  brought  distinction  to 
their  country. 

The  male  choirs  of  Norway  have  always 
played  a  leading  role  in  the  music  life  of  the 
nation.  The  students',  merchants',  and  art- 
ists' singing  clubs  at  Christiania  during  the 
past  seventy-five  years  have  had  artistic  as 
well  as  patriotic  aims.  Music  festivals,  after 
the  pattern  of  those  held  at  Cincinnati,  and 
Worcester  and  Springfield,  Massachusetts, 
have  also  contributed  toward  the  development 
of  national  music  art.  The  most  eminent  cho- 
ral leaders  in  Norway  have  been  Johan  D. 


Folk-music  and  Edvard  Grieg     295 

Behrens,  F.  A.  Reissiger,  and  O.  A.  Grondahl. 
The  Norwegian  Musical  Union,  already  re- 
ferred to  in  connection  with  the  discussion  of 
the  art  of  Edvard  Grieg,  has  been  active  in  the 
development  of  tonal  ideals.  Its  aim  has  been 
to  provide  chamber  concerts  of  a  high  order. 
Grieg  and  Svendsen  were  its  first  conductors. 
They  were  succeeded  by  Ole  Olsen,  who  com- 
bined the  talents  of  orchestral  leader  with 
those  of  composer,  chorister,  and  band-leader. 
For  many  years  he  directed  the  Second  Bri- 
gade Band  at  Christiania  with  the  rank  of  cap- 
tain. Johan  Selnler,  also  a  composer,  suc- 
ceeded Olsen  in  the  direction  of  the  Musical 
Union;  and  Tver  Holter,  a  composer  of  sym- 
phonies, orchestral  suites,  chamber-music  and 
vocal  scores,  followed  Selmer.  Other  orches- 
tral leaders  are  Johan  Hennum,  Per  Winge, 
and  Johan  Halvorsen. 


CHAPTER    XX 

PAINTING,     SCULPTURE,     AND     ARCHITECTURE 

Recent  development  of  national  art-consciousness  —  First  gen- 
eration of  painters  influenced  by  Denmark  and  Germany  — 
Dahl,  Fearnley,  Baade,  and  Frich  —  The  second  period  in  the 
history  of  Norwegian  painting  and  the  influence  of  the 
Diisseldorf  school  —  National  themes  —  Contemporary  ar- 
tists —  Otto  Sinding,  Heyerdahl,  Thaulow,  and  Werenskiold 

—  The  younger  painters  —  Sculpture  allied  with  woodwork 

—  Stephen   Sinding   and   Skeibrok  —  Development   of   archi- 
tecture—  Timber  buildings  —  The  cathedrals — Old  churches 
at  Borgund,  Vik,  and  Reinlid  —  Domestic  architecture. 

IN  art  as  in  so  many  other  departments  of 
thought,  it  was  not  until  Norway  was  separated 
from  Denmark  that  the  national  consciousness 
was  aroused.  And  for  many  years  following 
the  union  with  Sweden  her  artists  and  art  stu- 
dents got  altogether  too  much  of  their  inspira- 
tion in  France  and  Germany  to  make  possible 
the  development  of  a  distinctly  national  school. 
Indeed,  Norwegian  artists  have  yet  to  learn 
that  Gamle  Norge,  with  its  endless  physio- 
graphic and  human  types,  is  infinitely  richer 
in  inspiration  and  subjects  than  the  older  art 
countries  of  Europe. 

296 


Painting,  Sculpture,  Architecture  297 

The  first  generation  of  Norwegian  artists  in- 
cludes Dahl,  Fearnley,  Baade,  Frich,  and  Gor- 
bitz.  Most  of  them  received  their  art  training 
at  Copenhagen,  and  they  were  accordingly 
keenly  influenced  by  the  pronounced  romantic 
landscape  movement  then  in  vogue  in  Denmark 
and  Germany.  Johan  Christian  Dahl  (1788- 
1857),  the  bell-wether  of  the  flock,  was  an  artist 
of  lively  and  positive  temperament,  but  his 
thoroughly  cheerful  and  healthy  nature  spared 
him  from  the  exaggerations  of  the  decadent 
romantic  traditions.  He  was  a  professor  in 
the  art  academy  at  Dresden  for  many  years, 
but  he  made  frequent  home  visits,  and  he  has 
left  some  splendid  scenic  descriptions  of  west- 
ern Norway,  among  which  may  be  mentioned 
"  The  View  from  Stedje,"  "  The  Jostedal 
Glacier,"  and  "  The  Birch  in  a  Storm." 

Thomas  Fearnley  (1802-1842),  a  pupil  of 
Dahl,  consecrated  his  energies  to  decorative 
idealistic  landscapes  in  Italy,  Switzerland,  and 
Norway.  His  most  effective  Norwegian  sub- 
ject is  "  Labrofos,"  a  fine  waterfall  in  Tele- 
marken.  Knud  Baade  (1808-1879),  another 
pupil  of  Dahl,  also  lived  abroad.  His  specialty 
was  moonlight  pictures.  J.  C.  G.  Frich  (1810- 
1858),  another  of  Dahl's  students,  was  the  first 


298  In  Viking  Land 

of  the  early  painters  to  reside  in  Norway.  The 
Norwegian  scenes  in  the  dining-room  at  Oscars- 
hall,  Christiania,  are  among  his  best  examples 
of  decorative  landscape.  Johan  Gorbitz  (1782- 
1852)  won  distinction  as  a  portrait  painter,  but 
he  spent  most  of  his  life  abroad. 

The  second  period  in  the  history  of  Nor- 
wegian painting  is  associated  with  the  Diissel- 
dorf  school  and  a  marked  tendency  toward  the 
choice  of  realistic  subjects.  But  the  Diissel- 
dorf  school  soon  degenerated  into  sentimen- 
tality and  superficial  humour.  In  its  healthier 
days,"  remarks  Jens  Thiis,  "  the  school  had 
dived  into  the  world  of  reality  to  replenish  its 
stock  of  subjects,  but  not  nearly  deep  enough 
to  result  in  historical  paintings  or  representa- 
tions of  country  life  in  which  the  figures  moved 
freely  and  naturally." 

Adolph  Tidemand  (1814-1876)  represents  the 
high-water  mark  of  the  Diisseldorf  school.  His 
genere  pictures  and  representations  of  peas- 
ant life  —  characteristic  ethnic  types,  costumes 
and  dwellings  from  different  parts  of  the  coun- 
try —  gave  an  altogether  wholesome  impetus  to 
the  native  art  of  Norway.  His  painting  of  the 
dissenting  Haugianere  holding  religious  service 
in  the  cottage  of  a  peasant,  ' '  The  Bridal  Party 


Painting,  Sculpture,  Architecture  299 

in  Hardanger,"  "  The  Fanatics,"  "  The  Soli- 
tary Couple,"  and  the  ten  decorative  paintings 
at  Oscarshall  indicate  his  familiarity  with  the 
life  of  the  common  people.  Tidemand  had 
large  interests  and  broad  sympathies,  and  he 
influenced  profoundly  not  only  Norwegian 
painting,  but  also  poetry,  music,  and  the  other 
culture  currents  of  his  day. 

The  deep  fjords  and  the  bare  mountains  of 
western  Norway  had  a  sympathetic  interpreter 
in  Hans  Gude,  whose  "  Norwegian  Land- 
scape," "  Mountain  View,"  and  ' ' Christiania 
Fjord  "  in  the  national  gallery  at  Christiania, 
represent  him  at  his  best.  Herman  August 
Cappelen  (1827-1852)  had  more  decided  lyric 
qualities  than  his  predecessors  and  contempo- 
raries. His  "  Dying-Out  of  the  Primeval 
Forest  ' '  is  the  most  emphatically  romantic  pic- 
ture in  Norwegian  art ;  and  his  two  Telemarken 
paintings  in  the  national  gallery  —  the  forest 
scene  and  the  waterfall  —  indicate  an  intimate 
acquaintance  with  nature.  The  first  thorough- 
going realist  among  Norwegian  painters  was 
Johan  Frederik  Eckerberg  (1822-1870),  whose 
"  Saetersdal  "  and  "  Mountain  Scenery  "  are 
treasured  at  Christiania.  Other  painters  be- 
longing to  the  same  period  are  Morten  Miiller, 


300  In  Viking  Land 

who  painted  Norwegian  pine-woods  and  coast 
scenes;  Erik  Bodom  (1829-1879),  whose  spe- 
cialty was  deep,  silent  mountain  tarns ;  Sigvald 
Dahl,  an  animal  and  portrait  painter,  and 
Franz  Boe  (1820-1891),  a  painter  of  fruit, 
flowers,  and  still  life. 

Scandinavian  mythology  found  its  first  na- 
tive exponent  in  Peter  Nicolai  Arbo  (1831- 
1892),  who  came  under  the  influence  of  French 
art.  Ludwig  Munthe  (1841-1896)  was  also  in- 
fluenced by  the  current  French  school.  Two 
of  his  best  paintings  are  in  the  national  gallery 
at  Christiania  — ' '  Winter  off  the  Norwegian 
Coast ' '  and  ' '  Autumn  Evening. "  Of  a  higher 
order  of  merit  are  the  landscape  paintings  of 
Amaldus  Nielsen,  whose  "  Evening  on  the 
Hvaler  islands  "  and  "  The  Hardanger 
Fjord  "  are  in  the  national  gallery.  Several 
of  Nielsen's  portraits  are  capitally  done,  that 
of  Edvard  Grieg,  the  composer,  in  the  national 
gallery,  possessing  exceptional  merit. 

The  contemporary  artists  of  Norway  who 
have  achieved  more  than  national  distinction  — 
Sinding,  Heyerdahl,  Peterssen,  Werenskiold, 
Krohg,  Thaulow,  and  Gerhard  Munthe  —  have 
come  under  the  influence  of  the  French  open- 
air  and  the  Munich  schools.  Otto  Sinding,  of 


Painting,  Sculpture,  Architecture  301 

the  versatile  family  that  has  also  produced  a 
great  composer  and  a  great  sculptor,  has  given 
evidence  of  widest  range  of  pictorial  talents. 
He  has  been  eminently  successful  with  genre 
and  marine  pieces,  historical  scenes,  land- 
scapes, and  scenes  from  the  life  of  the  peasants 
in  Finmark  and  the  arctic  regions.  His  '  *  Win- 
ter Scene  in  the  Lofoten  islands  "  in  the  na- 
tional gallery  is  one  of  his  best  landscape  paint- 
ings. 

Peterssen  and  Heyerdahl  belong  to  the  re- 
form movement  in  art  associated  with  impres- 
sionism. The  work  of  Elif  Peterssen  has  been 
distinguished  by  the  perfection  of  its  compo- 
sition, the  excellence  of  its  colour,  and  the  sub- 
tlety of  its  psychological  character.  The 
scenery  in  his  large  "  Nocturne,"  one  of  his 
best  works,  is  taken  from  the  neighbourhood  of 
Christiania.  He  also  has  an  excellent  portrait 
of  Edvard  Grieg.  The  talent  of  Hans  Heyer- 
dahl is  of  the  more  sensuous  sort  —  a  voluptu- 
ous enjoyment  of  beauty,  a  love  of  delicate 
form,  and  an  intoxication  in  the  sweetness  of 
colour.  "  The  Two  Sisters,"  in  the  gallery  at 
Christiania,  probably  represents  him  at  his 
best. 

In  the  contest  for  naturalism  in  art  during 


302  In  Viking  Land 

the  early  eighties,  Werenskiold  and  Krohg 
formulated  the  programme  of  the  new  tendency 
and  planned  the  strategic  tactics  for  Norway. 
Erik  Werenskiold,  whose  portraits  of  Ibsen, 
Nansen,  and  Bjb'rnson  are  so  well  known,  has 
contributed  two  notable  genre  paintings  to  the 
national  gallery  at  Christiania  — ' '  Funeral  of 
a  Peasant  "  and  "  Peasant  Girls  in  Telemar- 
ken."  Christian  Krohg,  to  whom  impression- 
ism has  been  "  not  merely  a  new  view  of  art, 
but  a  new  artistic  form  resting  on  new  social, 
ethical,  and  religious  theories,"  has  attained 
highest  artistic  perfection  in  his  representa- 
tions of  scenes  in  Skagen. 

After  his  return  from  France  Fritz  Thaulow 
founded  an  open-air  art  school  at  Modum,  where 
he  succeeded  in  gathering  about  him  a  consid- 
erable number  of  promising  young  landscape 
painters.  Jens  Thiis  says  of  him:  "  Enthusi- 
astic and  amiable,  rich  and  independent,  active 
and  handsome,  full  of  good  humour  and  bold 
confidence,  he  was  the  central  figure  in  the 
young  generation  of  artists. "  Three  of  his  best 
paintings  —  "  Haugfos,"  "  The  Road  in  Kra- 
gero,"  and  "  A  Winter's  Day  "  —  are  in  the 
national  gallery  at  Christiania,  and  one  excel- 
lent piece  — ' '  The  Wet  Day  "  —  is  in  a  pri- 


Painting,  Sculpture,  Architecture  303 

vate  collection  in  America.  The  leading  char- 
acteristics of  Thaulow's  paintings  are  frank- 
ness of  individuality,  freshness  of  outlook, 
healthy  naturalism,  and  love  of  bright  colours. 
His  mastery  of  technique  is  something  wonder- 
ful, but  he  is  altogether  too  sincere  an  artist 
to  let  mere  technical  accomplishments  allure 
him  into  ostentations. 

The  highly  imaginative  Gerhard  Munthe, 
whose  youthful  grotesque  polychrome  fairy 
scenes  in  the  hotel  at  Holmenkollen  proclaimed 
him  as  something  of  a  freak,  has  done  more 
solid  work  as  he  has  matured.  In  the  matter 
of  representations  of  peasant  life  and  the  illus- 
tration of  fairy  tales  he  has  been  something  of 
a  missionary.  Among  other  Norwegians  who 
have  rallied  round  the  banner  of  naturalism 
are  Christian  Skredsvig,  Nicolai  Ulfsten,  Jacob 
Gloersen,  and  Harriet  Backer. 

Among  the  younger  Norwegian  artists  of 
promise  may  be  mentioned  Gustav  Wentzel, 
whose  "  Midday  Meal,"  "  Peasants  Dancing," 
and  snow  scenes  are  masterpieces  of  colouring ; 
Eyolf  Soot,  also  a  great  colourist,  whose  por- 
trait of  Bjornson  is  well  known;  Svend  Jor- 
gensen,  the  artist  of  the  simple  feelings  of  sim- 
ple people,  Halfdan  Storm,  Edvard  Munch, 


304  In  Viking  Land 

Thorolf  Holmboe,  and  a  dozen  other  young 
painters  who  constitute  the  bow  of  promise  of 
Norway's  future  art  history. 

Sculpture  in  Norway  is  so  closely  allied  with 
wood-work  and  the  industrial  arts  that  it  is  not 
easy  to  dissociate  them  from  the  higher  forms 
of  plastic  art.  Wood  carving  is  probably  the 
oldest  of  the  fine  arts  in  Norway  and  it  was  the 
starting  point  in  the  development  of  sculpture. 
As  early  as  the  eighth  century  —  as  is  apparent 
from  the  recently  discovered  viking  ship  at 
Oseberg  —  the  Norwegians  had  attained  a  rela- 
tively high  degree  of  skill  in  wood  carving  and 
the  ornamentation  of  boats  and  wooden  house- 
hold utensils.  While  the  ornamental  treatment 
of  wood  forms  a  good  starting  point  for  fur- 
ther artistic  training  in  the  plastic  arts,  it  has 
doubtless  been  a  drawback  in  the  highest  fields 
of  sculpture.  Dietrichson  has  called  attention 
to  the  fact  that  it  takes  a  long  time  for  artists 
trained  in  wood-carving  to  shake  off  tradition 
and  turn  from  the  ornamental,  which  is  their 
strong  point,  to  the  free  representation  of  the 
human  figure,  which  is  the  chief  domain  of 
sculpture. 

Magnus  Elisen  Berg  (1666-1739),  while  more 
of  a  carver  in  ivory  than  a  sculptor,  influenced 


Painting,  Sculpture,  Architecture  305 

profoundly  the  early  history  of  plastic  art  in 
Norway.  Hans  Michelsen  (1789-1859),  whose 
twelve  apostles  are  in  the  cathedral  at  Trond- 
hjem,  represents  the  highest  development  in 
sculpture  during  the  first  generation  of  the 
last  century.  Borch,  Middlethun,  Hausen,  and 
Grlosimodt  belong  to  the  second  generation, 
and  Budal,  Brynjulf,  Bergslein,  Fladager,  and 
Jacobsen  to  the  third  generation,  but  few  of 
the  works  of  these  sculptors  are  of  exceptional 
merit. 

The  two  most  conspicuous  Norwegian  sculp- 
tors are  Stephen  Sinding  and  Matthias  Skei- 
brok.  Two  of  Sinding 's  best  pieces  are  the 
statues  of  Ibsen  and  Bjornson  in  front  of  the 
national  theatre  at  Christiania,  and  Skeibrok's 
best  work  is  the  group  for  the  tympanum  of  the 
fa§ade  of  the  university  at  Christiania.  His 
"  Mother  Waking  "  in  the  national  gallery  is 
much  praised  for  its  classical  purity.  Axel 
Ender,  whose  painting  representing  the  women 
at  the  sepulchre  in  the  church  at  Molde,  is  also 
a  sculptor  of  note.  His  statue  of  Tordenskjold, 
the  great  Norwegian  naval  commander,  adorns 
one  of  the  public  squares  in  Christiania. 

The  development  of  architecture  in  Norway 


306  In  Viking  Land 

is  associated  with  the  construction  of  timber 
buildings.  The  heathen  temples  were  built  of 
wood  and  were  richly  ornamented.  Most  of 
them  were  burned  or  altered  to  meet  the  needs 
of  Christian  worship  during  the  tenth  and 
eleventh  centuries.  Some  of  the  earliest  ex- 
isting Christian  churches,  dating  from  the 
eleventh  century,  are  built  of  rough-hewn  stone, 
with  narrow  sanctuaries  but  without  side  aisles. 
The  Norman-Eomanesque  architecture,  which 
had  developed  in  northern  France  and  England, 
furnished  the  models  for  the  earliest  cathedrals 
built  at  Trondhjem,  Stavanger,  and  Hamar. 
An  account  of  the  vicissitudes  of  the  national 
cathedral  at  Trondhjem  has  been  given  in  a 
previous  chapter.  The  cathedral  at  Stavanger 
was  built  toward  the  close  of  the  eleventh  cen- 
tury, but  was  burned  a  hundred  years  later  and 
was  rebuilt  in  the  Gothic  style.  It  was  sadly 
disfigured  during  the  Lutheran  reformation, 
but  has  recently  been  restored.  The  ruined 
cathedral  at  Hamar  dates  from  the  twelfth 
century. 

Besides  the  early  stone  churches  of  the  larger 
towns,  in  the  smaller  places  houses  of  worship 
were  built  of  wood.  These  were  in  the  Eoman- 


Painting,  Sculpture,  Architecture  307 

esque  style  of  architecture,  both  as  regards  the 
general  form  and  the  ornamental  embellish- 
ments. An  account  of  the  old  timber  church  at 
Borgund  has  already  been  given.  There  is  also 
a  fine  thirteenth  century  timber  church  at  Rein- 
lid  near  Fjeldheim  in  Valders.  The  old  church 
at  Vik  on  the  Sogne  fjord,  which  has  been  re- 
stored, is  an  example  of  an  ancient  temple. 
The  church  at  Hitterdal  is  the  largest  of  the 
existing  twenty-four  mediaeval  timber  churches. 
The  early  domestic  architecture  of  Norway 
is  extremely  interesting.  A  number  of  timber 
houses,  which  date  from  the  thirteenth  century, 
are  still  in  excellent  state  of  preservation.  Sev- 
eral fine  old  houses  have  been  transferred  from 
Numedal,  Gudbransdal,  and  Telemarken  to  the 
grounds  of  the  national  museum  at  Bygdo  near 
Christiania.  The  Finneloft  at  Vossvangen  has 
already  been  referred  to.  Most  of  the  early 
timber  houses  contain  one  large  room  and  two 
smaller  ones.  Both  inside  and  outside  the  mas- 
sive timbers  of  the  walls  are  visible,  with  their 
cross-joints  at  the  corners,  the  roofs  jutting  far 
out  over  the  gables.  "  These  one-story  dwell- 
ing houses,"  remarks  Johan  Meyer,  "  with 
their  low,  verdant  turf-roof  above  the  nut- 


308  In  Viking  Land 

brown  walls,  are  often  remarked  for  their  good 
proportions;  and  the  comparatively  highly 
decorated  verandas  heighten  the  picturesque 
effect." 


THE   END. 


APPENDIXES 

I.    SUGGESTIONS  FOR  TRAVELLERS 

THE  appended  list  of  books  on  Norway  will 
suggest  to  the  traveller  some  of  the  more  gen- 
eral sources  of  information.  There  are  in 
English  three  well-known  guide-books  on  Nor- 
way—  the  Baedeker,  the  Cook,  and  the  Ben- 
nett. The  first-named  is  unquestionably  the 
best.  Its  information  is  more  complete  and 
more  to  the  point  than  either  of  the  others. 

Chapter  X  gives  detailed  information  con- 
cerning methods  of  travel  so  that  little  more 
need  be  said.  The  conditions  there  pointed 
out,  however,  make  it  almost  necessary  for  the 
hurried  traveller  to  arrange  with  one  of  the 
tourist  bureaus  for  his  carriages  and  boats; 
and  even  the  travellers  who  make  the  tour  of 
the  country  with  comparative  leisure  will  lessen 
the  chances  of  discomfort  by  securing  the  co- 
operation of  such  an  agency.  Thomas  Ben- 
nett &  Sons,  with  offices  at  Christiania,  Bergen, 

809 


3 10  Appendixes 

Trondhjem,  and  Stavanger,  have  operated  in 
the  country  for  more  than  half  a  century.  I 
have  taken  their  tours  and  I  have  talked  with 
many  travellers  who  have  planned  and  exe- 
cuted their  trips  with  the  aid  of  the  Bennetts ; 
and  I  have  heard  only  words  of  the  highest 
commendation  for  the  excellence  and  the  reli- 
ability of  their  service. 

As  noted  in  the  first  chapter,  the  summer 
season  in  Norway  is  very  brief.  It  is  limited 
to  six  weeks,  or  at  best  to  two  months  if  the 
North  Cape  is  the  objective  point.  But  even 
during  the  summer  the  weather  may  be  uncom- 
fortably cool  (as  it  may  sometimes  be  uncom- 
fortably warm),  and  the  traveller  should  pro- 
vide himself  with  warm  wraps.  The  fogs  and 
rains  sometimes  seriously  interfere  with  the 
comfort  of  travel  north  of  Trondhjem;  but, 
barring  dust,  mosquitoes,  and  occasional  rains, 
overland  travel  in  the  central  and  southern 
parts  of  the  country  is  usually  attended  with 
comfort  during  July  and  August. 

There  are,  of  course,  winter  sports  and 
amusements  in  Norway  during  the  long  and 
cold  winter  months,  as  pointed  out  in  Chapter 
XVII;  but  these  diversions  are  limited  to  re- 
stricted areas.  Moreover,  inland  travel  —  the 


Appendixes  311 

sections  covered  by  the  interesting  and  pic- 
turesque mountain  valleys  —  is  not  feasible 
during  the  winter. 

Norway  is  not  suitable  for  walking  tours. 
The  distances  are  too  great  and  the  points  of 
interest  too  far  apart.  On  the  other  hand, 
cyclists  who  do  not  object  to  pushing  their 
machines  a  part  of  the  time,  will  find  that 
method  of  travel  both  pleasurable  and  inex- 
pensive. Cyclists  who  take  their  wheels  with 
them  may  escape  the  annoying  customs  regula- 
tions by  taking  membership  in  the  English 
Cyclists'  Touring  Club  or  the  Touring  Club 
de  France.  The  public  highways,  as  already 
noted,  are  excellent,  and  the  wayside  inns, 
while  very  primitive,  are  comfortable,  and  if 
one  can  adapt  himself  to  a  fish  diet,  the  food 
will  be  found  satisfactory. 

Couriers  are  not  necessary;  for,  even  in  the 
less -travelled  sections  of  the  country,  English- 
speaking  Norwegians  may  be  found.  The  peo- 
ple are  quick  in  the  acquisition  of  foreign  lan- 
guages and  many  Norwegians  who  have  lived 
for  years  in  America,  and  thus  acquired  our 
speech,  have  returned  to  the  fatherland.  If, 
however,  couriers  are  desired,  they  may  be  se- 
cured through  the  tourist  agencies. 


312  Appendixes 

The  monetary  system  of  Norway  is  the  same 
as  in  Denmark  and  Sweden.  The  krone,  worth 
from  twenty-seven  to  twenty-eight  cents  of 
American  money,  is  the  unit,  and  this  is  divided 
into  one  hundred  ore.  The  universal  honesty 
of  the  people,  however,  minimizes  this  difficulty 
in  travel.  Telegraph  and  telephone  offices  are 
found  everywhere,  even  in  the  remote  and 
sparsely  settled  rural  sections  of  the  country. 

Eailway  fares  in  Norway  are  about  the  same 
as  in  the  other  countries  of  Europe.  The  serv- 
ice is  very  fair,  but  the  speed  is  slow.  Express 
trains  rarely  exceed  twenty-five  miles  an  hour 
and  ordinary  trains  seldom  reach  twenty  miles. 
Passengers  are  customarily  permitted  about 
sixty  pounds  of  free  checked-baggage.  In  the 
overland  travel  with  the  stolkjserre,  however, 
one  cannot  take  more  than  thirty  or  forty 
pounds. 

Sportsmen  are  required  to  have  a  govern- 
ment shooting  license,  which  costs  about  twenty- 
seven  dollars ;  and  for  hunting  reindeer,  stags, 
and  elk  the  license  costs  twice  this  amount. 
The  best  reindeer  shooting  is  to  be  found  in 
the  Hallingdal,  the  Hardanger,  the  Eomsdal, 
and  Finmark.  One  must  have  the  hunting  li- 
cense not  only  for  the  forest  lands  and  the  gov- 


Appendixes  313 

eminent  reserves,  but  also  to  shoot  on  private 
property.  There  are  excellent  trout  and  sal- 
mon streams  in  Norway,  but  Englishmen  have 
leased  the  best  inland  fishing  waters.  Some 
of  the  streams  have  been  leased  by  the  pro- 
prietors of  hotels  for  the  benefit  of  their  guests. 
This  is  true  of  the  Loen  river,  which  has  been 
leased  by  the  proprietor  of  Hotel  Alexandria 
at  Loen  on  one  of  the  branches  of  the  Nord 
fjord.  For  information  concerning  close  sea- 
sons, which  vary  in  different  parts  of  the  coun- 
try, sportsmen  should  consult  "  Norwegian 
Anglings  and  Sportings,"  an  annual  publica- 
tion issued  at  34  St.  James  Street,  London,  by 
J.  A.  Lumley  &  Co. 


II.    BIBLIOGRAPHY 


BOYESEN,  HJALMAR  H.    The  Story  of  Norvmy.    New  York,  1887. 
pp.    556. 

A  brief  but  excellent  survey  of  Norwegian  history. 

CATON,  JOHN  DEAN.     A  Summer  in  Norway.     Chicago,  1875. 
pp.  401. 

Travel  notes  of  a  very  general  character. 
CHAPMAN,  ABEL.    Wild  Norway.  London,  1897.    pp.  358. 

An  excellent  book  from  the  viewpoint  of  the  sportsman. 
COOPER,  A.  HEATON.     The  Norwegian  Fjords.  London,   1907. 
pp.  178. 

Paintings  and  descriptions  by  an  English  artist.   Thoroughly 
interesting. 

CURTIS,   WILLIAM   ELEROY.     Denmark,   Norway,   and  Sweden. 
Akron,  Ohio,  1903.    pp.  505. 

Very  readable  newspaper  sketches.     Pp.  56-259  devoted 
to  Norway. 

DuCHAiLLU,  PAUL  B.     The  Land  of  the  Midnight  Sun.     New 
York,  1882.     2  vols. 

Comprehensive  descriptions  of  Norway  and  Lapland. 
GOODMAN,  E.  J.    The  Best  Tour  in  Norway.    London,  1892.  pp. 
336. 

The  author  undertakes  to  outline  a  tour  of  three  or  four 
weeks. 

HERVEY,  HETTA  M.     Glimpses  of  Norseland.     Boston  (1889). 
pp.  242. 

A  pleasant  descriptive  account  of  the  west-coast  fjords. 
JUNQMAN,  Nico.     Norway.    London  (1905).    pp.  199. 

The   coloured   illustrations  are  interesting,  but  the  text  is 
inconsequential. 

KEARY,  CHARLES  FRANCIS.    Norway  and  the  Norwegians.    New 
York,  1902.    pp.  402. 

A  rather  informing  book. 

Norway:    Official  Publication  for  the  Paris  Exposition  of  1900. 
Christiania,  1900.    pp.  626. 

314 


Appendixes  3 15 

Encyclopaedic  in  scope  and  thoroughly  reliable  in  its  informa- 
tion.    There  are  thirty-nine  chapters,  and  each  chapter  has 
been  prepared  by  a  specialist. 
STONE,  OLIVIA  M.    Norway  in  June.     London,  1882.    pp.  448. 

Diary  of  an  observant  English  woman,  especially  valuable 
for  the  abundance  of  details  of  the  manners  and  customs 
of  the  rural  population. 

TAYLOR,  BAYARD.     Northern  Travel:   Summer  and  Winter  Pic- 
tures.   New  York,  1863.     pp.  436. 

Contrary  to  his  customary  travel  habits,  Taylor  was  severely 
critical  of  the  Norwegians  and  he  found  a  lot  of  fault  with 
them. 

TYLER,  KATHERINE  M.     The  Story  of  a  Scandinavian  Summer. 
New  York,  1881.     pp.  394. 

Travel  notes  of  passing  interest. 

VINCENT,  FRANK.    Norsk,  Lapp,  and  Finn;  or,  Travel  Tracings 
from  the  Far  North  of  Europe.    New  York,  1881.    pp.  263. 

Rather  agreeable  travel  sketches. 

WOOD,  CHARLES  M.    Norwegian  By-Ways.    London,  1903.    pp« 
384. 

Descriptions  of  the  southern  provinces  of  Norway. 
WYLLIE,  M.  A.  Norway  and  Its  Fjords.    London  (1907).    pp.  315. 
An  account  of  the  fjords  with  sixteen  illustrations  in  colours. 


INDEX 


Aalesund,  189. 

Aalsad,  201. 

Aas,  138. 

Aason,   Ivar,   91,   145,   261. 

Accident  insurance,   102. 

Agdenes,  81. 

Agricultural  College,  138. 

Agriculture,  17,  163-177. 

Akershus,  178,  249. 

Akers  river,  248. 

d'Albert,  Eugene,  293. 

Albrecht,  54. 

Alfred  the  Great,  28. 

Algerian  pirates,  241. 

Alexander  III.,  King  of  Scot- 
land, 49,  50. 

Amboise,  21. 

Ambulatory  schools,  132. 

America,  30,  36,  37,  64,  95,  303. 
See  also  United  States. 

Americans,  88. 

Amne'us,  G.,  quoted,  100. 

Anne  of  Denmark,  247. 

Anglo-Americans,  87. 

Anglo-Norman  architecture, 
228 

Animals,  12-14,  106, 

Anund,  29. 

Apples,  165. 

Arbitration  courts,  103. 

Arbo,  Peter  Nicolai,  88,  300. 

Architecture,  228-232,  255, 
305-308. 


Arci  of  Norway,  98. 

ArLoOphanes,  276. 

Army,  79-80. 

Art.  Sec  Painting  and  Sculp- 
ture. 

Art  schools,  138. 

Aryan  race,  87. 

Asbjornsen,  P.  C.,  147,  250. 

Asgard,  117. 

Asiatic  cholera,  97. 

Athanasian  creed,  125. 

Athelstan,  King  of  England, 
31. 

Audhumbla,  116. 

Auk.  14. 

Aun,  29. 

Aurora  borealis,  10,  10fc-107, 
118,  161,  256. 


B 


Baade,  Knud,  297. 
Backer-Grondahl,  Agatha,  285, 

294. 

Backer,  Harriet,  303. 
Badstue,  167. 
Ba?gna  river,  214,  215. 
Baltic  provinces,  35. 
Baltic  sea,  4,  21. 
Bandak  lake,  159. 
Banks,  85-86. 
Baptists,  116. 
Barley,  164,  188. 
Bathing,  169. 
Bears,  12. 


317 


318 


Index 


Beauvois,  21. 

Bede  psalm  book,  129. 

Begging,  95. 

Behrens,  Johan  D.,  294. 

Belgium,  189. 

Bennett,  Thomas,  and  Sons, 
309. 

Berg,  Magnus  Elisen,  304. 

Bergen,  summer  light,  10; 
rainfall,  11;  parliament, 
45;  county,  77;  courts,  79; 
fortress,  81;  population, 
100;  technical  schools,  137; 
libraries,  139;  newspapers, 
140;  railways,  156;  steam- 
boats, 158;  fisheries,  183; 
industries,  186;  commerce, 
189;  first  bishop,  227;  lo- 
cation, 234;  foundation,  235; 
Haakon's  Hall,  236;  Han- 
seatic  league,  237;  treaty 
with  Lubeck,  238;  fires,  241; 
commerce,  242;  industrial 
arts,  243;  municipal  admin- 
istration, 244;  art  gallery, 
245;  hospitals,  246;  birth- 
place of  Edvard  Grieg,  286; 
tourist  bureau,  309. 

Bergslien,  Brynjulf,  250,  305. 

Bernadotte.  See  Charles  XIV. 
John. 

Bible,  263. 

Bibliography,  314-315. 

Bilberry,  15. 

Birch  trees,  179. 

Birchlegs,  46,  236. 

Birds,  13-14. 

Birth-rate,  99. 

Bishops,  127,  226. 

Bjorne  fjord,  193. 

Bjornson,  Bjornstjerne,  con- 
nection with  newspapers, 
140,  143;  literary  influence, 
149;  account  of  a  sseter,  170; 
sketch,  265;  novels,  266; 
personality,  267;  "  Arne," 
281;  "Sigurd  the  Crusa- 


der," 292;  portrait  by  We- 
renskiold,  302;  by  Soot,  303; 
statue  by  Sinding,  305; 
quoted,  89,  91,  203,  265. 

Blaaflaten,  212. 

Blackbirds,  13. 

"  Black  Death,"  52,  230. 

Blaeberry,  15. 

Blue  bells,  15. 

Boats,  157,  184. 

Bodo,  10. 

Bodom,  Erik,  300. 

Boe,  Anna,  140. 

Boe,  Franz,  300. 

Bondhusbrse,  6. 

Borgund  church,  212-213, 
307. 

Boyesen,  Hjalmar  H.,  quoted, 
21,  39,  48,  56,  160;  bibliog- 
raphy, 314. 

Bragi,  122. 

"  Brand  "  by  Ibsen,  270. 

Bredvik,  207. 

Brekespere,  Nicholas,  227. 

Bremen,  226. 

British  Isles,  223.  See  also 
England  and  Great  Bri- 
tain. 

Brinchmann,  Chr.,  262,  264, 
274. 

Bronchial  catarrh,  97. 

Bronze  age,  17. 

Brude  Slur,  200. 

Bruce,  Isabella,  50,  51. 

Bruce,  Robert,  50. 

Bruun,  261. 

Bukn  fjord,  8. 

Bull,  Ole,    244,    282,    294, 

von  Billow,  Hans,  285. 

Burbrse,  6. 

Bureaucratic  party,  142 

Burial  customs,  23-24. 

Burke,  Edmund,  217. 

Butter,  170,  188. 

Bygdo,  255,  307. 

Bygland,  157. 

Byglands  fjord,  206. 


Index 


319 


Cabinet  officers,  76. 

Canals,  159-160. 

Canons,  6. 

Canterbury,  228. 

Cape  Cod,  37. 

Capital  punishment,  77. 

Cappelen,  Herman  August, 
299. 

Carl-Johans  Gaden,  249. 

Carlyle,  Thomas,  224,  289. 

Carriole,  152,  207. 

Cathedrals,  228-232,  306. 

Caton,  John  Dean,  bibliog- 
raphy, 314. 

Celibacy,  125. 

Cereals,  83,  165,  187. 

Chamber  music,  284. 

Chapman,  Abel,  bibliography, 
314. 

Charlemagne,  35. 

Charles  XIV  John,  66-67,  250. 

Charles  XV,  68. 

Cherries,  165. 

Cheese,  112,  170,  172. 

Chicago,  23. 

Child  labour,  101. 

Choirs,  294. 

Chopin,  Frederic,  284,  293. 

Christian  I,  57. 

Christian  II,  58,  125. 

Christian  III,  125. 

Christian  IV,  61,  63,  248,  250. 

Christian  V,  62. 

Christian  VII,  64. 

Christiania,  summer  day,  10; 
climate,  11;  plant  life,  14; 
viking  ships,  23;  university, 
23,  64,  135-137,  305;  founda- 
tion, 61;  social  season,  74; 
county,  77;  prisons,  78; 
courts,  79;  banks,  85;  pop- 
ulation, 100;  art  schools, 
138;  libraries,  139;  news- 
papers, 140;'  railways,  156; 
industries,  186;  commerce, 


189;  first  bishop,  227;  loca- 
tion, 247;  fires,  248;  public 
buildings,  249;  control  of 
the  sale  of  liquor,  250;  win- 
ter sports,  256;  musical 
union  287;  singing  clubs, 
294;  art  gallery,  300;  tourist 
bureau,  309. 

Christiania  fjord,  17,  254,  299. 

Christian  religion,  20,  31,  33, 
35-36,  38,  119,  124,  226. 

Christiansand,  61,  81. 

Christopher  of  Bavaria,  57. 

Churches,  212-213,  See  also 
Cathedrals  and  Temples. 

Cincinnati,  294. 

Clausspn,  Peder,  149. 

Cleanliness,  94. 

Clergy,  127-128. 

Climate,  10-12,  104. 

Cloudberry,  15. 

Cod-fish,  182. 

Co-education,  133,  136. 

Collet,  Camilla,  274. 

Columbus,  Christopher,  36. 

Commerce,  187-189. 

Community  farms,  177. 

Complexion,  89. 

Confirmation,  128. 

Conifers,  179. 

Consular  service,  69-70. 

Continuation  schools,  134. 

Cooper,  A.  Heaton,  quoted, 
199;  bibliography,  314. 

Copenhagen,  33,  57,  263,  297. 

Copper,  61,  187. 

Cormorant,  14. 

Cornel,  15. 

Costumes.    See  Dress. 

Cotter's  places,  176. 

County  government,  77. 

Couriers,  311. 

Courts  of  law,  78-79. 

Cows,  166. 

Cremation,  18. 

Crime,  78,  253. 

Crowberry,  15. 


320 


Index 


Crusades,  42,  49. 
Cultivation  funds,  175. 
Curtis,        William        Eleroy, 

quoted,  105,  165,  173,  267; 

bibliography,  314. 
Cyclists,  311. 

D 

Dahl,  Johan  Christian,  91,  245, 

297. 

Dahl,  Sigvald,  300. 
Dairying,  169. 
Dakotas,  173. 
Dalen,  207. 
Dances,  278,  281-282. 
Danes,  87. 
Dano-Norwegian  language,  145, 

264. 

Dass,  Peder,  263. 
Death-rate,  97, 
Debt.    See  National  debt. 
Deer,  12. 
Denmark,   19,  28,  33,  35,  40, 

52,  53,  65,  67,  100,  125,  131, 

140,  242. 
Dialects,  145. 
Dissenters,  126-127. 
Dogberry,  15. 
Dogs,  113. 
"  Doll's  House  "     by     Ibsen, 

269. 

Domestic  architecture,  307. 
Dorchester,  22. 
Dorsten,  21. 
Dovrefjeld,   2,  3,   10,   11,   43, 

205 

Drammen,  98,  189,  248. 
Dress,  109,  194,  198,  206,  207, 

215. 

Dresden,  297. 
Drobak,  136,  256. 
Drowned  valleys,  190. 
Dublin,  22. 

Du  Chaillu,  Paul  B.,  bibliog- 
raphy, 314. 
Dusseldorf,  298. 


E 


Eagles,  13. 

Eckersberg,   Johan  Frederick, 

245,  299. 
Eddas,  116. 
Edible  berries,  15. 
Education,  131-150,  176. 
Edward  I,  King  of   England, 

50. 
Edward  VII,  King  of  England, 

73. 

Eid  fjord,  195. 
Eide,  195. 

Eider  ducks,  14,  161. 
Eidsvold  constitution,  66,  126, 

139,  140,  265. 
Elbe  river,  294. 
Elementary  schools,  132-134. 
Elk,  12. 

Elling,  Catherinus,  285. 
Emigration,  99,  173. 
Endemic  diseases,  97. 
Ender,  Axel,  203,  305. 
England,  19,  22,  28,  30,  3*,  35, 

40,  65,  84,  90,  223,  228,  240, 

242.       See  also  Great  Brit- 
am. 

English  language,  87,  93. 
English  Cyclists'  Touring  Club, 

311. 

Entails,  177. 
Epidemic  diseases,  97. 
Eric        Haakonsson,  4  36-38, 

221. 

Eric  of  Pomerania,  54. 
Eric  the  Blood- Axe,  31. 
Eric  the  Priest-Hater,  50. 
Eskimos,  108. 
Espelandsfos,  195. 
Esthonia,  34. 
Ethelred.   King    of    England, 

35 

Ethnic  stock,  87-88. 
Expenditures,  81. 
Exports,  188. 
Eyestein,  42. 


Index 


321 


Factory  laws,  101. 

Fagernses,  156,  214. 

Falcons,  13. 

Falk,  Hjalmar,  144,  147. 

Falkoping,  54. 

Fall  River,  Mass.,  37. 

Farm  life,  163-177. 

Farmsteads,  167-170,  172,  197. 

Faroe  islands,  22,  30,  46. 

Fearnley,  Thomas,  246,  297. 

Femsj  Sen  lake,  159. 

Feudal  system,  21,  90. 

Fillefjeld,  3,  154,  212. 

Finck,  Henry  T.,  quoted,  285, 

290. 

Fines,  78. 
Finland,  65,  107,  114,  131,  136. 

253. 
Finmark,  6,  13,  62,  105,  113, 

164,  178,  181,  301,  312. 
Finneloft,  209,  307. 
Finns,  109,  114. 
Fir  trees,  179. 

Fischer,  Karl,  quoted,  142, 143. 
Fish,  171,  240. 
Fisheries,  181-185. 
Fishing-boats,  184. 
Fish-market   at   Bergen,   243- 

244. 

Fjeldberg,  11. 
Fjeldheim,  215,  307. 
Fjelds,     205-219.       See     also 

Mountains. 
Fjone,  29. 
Fjords,   nature,    1;     described 

by  Froude,  159;  of  the  west- 
coast,  190-204;    depth,  191; 

Hardanger,   193;    Eid,   195; 

Sor,    195;     Sogne,    19-5-197; 

Nsero,  196-197;    Nord,  197; 

Geiranger,    199;     Stor,    199; 

Norangs,  201;    Molde,   202; 

Trondhjem,  203;    Byglands, 

206;     Strande,    215;     Chris- 

tiania,  254. 


Fjord  boats,  157. 

Fjord  steamer  yachts,  158. 

Fladbrod,  172. 

Flanders,  19. 

Flateland,  207. 

Fleischer's  Hotel,  209. 

Flekkefjord,  157. 

Flemish,  157. 

Flowers,  14-15. 

Folden  fjord,  8. 

Folgefonde,  6. 

Folk-music,  278-295. 

Folk-songs,  279. 

Fondalen,  5. 

Fontenelle,  21. 

Food,  171,  187,  311. 

Foreign  loans,  84. 

Forests,  178-181. 

Fortresses,  249. 

Foxes,  12,  13. 

Foxglove,  15. 

France,  19,  21,  30,  31,  35,  84, 
183,  302,  306. 

Franklin,  Sir  John,  104. 

Frederick  I,  59,  125. 

Frederick  II,  61. 

Frederick  III,  61-62. 

Frederick  IV,  62-63. 

Frederick  V,  63. 

Frederick  VIII,  King  of  Den- 
mark, 73. 

Fredrikshald,  159. 

Fredrikstad,  189. 

Free-trade  policies,  83. 

Frey,  29,  120. 

Freydunlund,  215. 

Frich,  J.  C.  G.,  245,  287. 

Friesland,  240. 

Frithjof's  saga,  255. 

Frouae,  James  Anthony,  159- 

Fruits,  J64. 

Funerals,  130. 

G 

Gadfly,  112. 
Galdhopig,  2. 
Game  laws,  13. 


322 


Index 


Garborg,  Arne,  91,  144,  274. 

Gauls,  20. 

Gausdalsfos,  199. 

Geiranger  fjord,  154,  199-202. 

Genre  pictures,  298. 

Gentians,  15. 

Geography  of  Scandinavia,  1- 
15. 

George  I,  King  of  Greece,  73. 

Germany,  4,  21,  33,  49,  63,  84, 
87,  124,  183. 

Glacial  lakes,  198. 

Glaciers,  3-6,  198. 

Glittertind,  2. 

Gloersen,  Jacob,  303. 

Glutton,  12. 

Gnomes,  203. 

Godfrey  the  Hunter,  30. 

Gokstad  ship,  23-25. 

Gol,  255. 

Goodman,  E.  J.,  bibliography, 
314. 

Gooseberries,  165. 

Gorbitz,  Johan,  245,  298. 

Goteborg  system,  250. 

Gothic  architecture,  228. 

Government  of  Norway,  74-78. 

Grammar,  261. 

Granite,  187. 

Grass,  165. 

Graven  fjord,  195. 

Grave-ships,  23-27. 

Grazing  lands,  163. 

Great  Britain,  19,  189.  See 
also  England. 

Greece,  35,  121. 

Greenland,  4,  36,  184,  227, 
239. 

Grieg,  Edvard,  Ole  Bull's  es- 
timate, 282;  place  in  the 
history  of  music,  285;  pa- 
rentage, 286;  musical  edu- 
cation, 287;  national  music, 
288;  Finck's  estimate,  290; 
genre  pieces,  291;  orches- 
tral compositions,  292;  mu- 
sical union,  295;  portrait  by 


Nielsen,  300;    by  Peterssen, 

301. 

Groceries,  188. 
Grondahl,      Agatha.       See 

Backer-Grondahl. 
Grondahl,  O.  A.,  295. 
Grotlid,  201. 
Grouse,  13. 
Grimstad,  11. 
Gudbransdal,  88,  156,  187,  201, 

206,  218-219,  307. 
Gude,  Hans,  245,  255,  299. 
Gudvangen,  154,  209. 
Guide-books,  309. 
Gula  river,  52. 
Gulbranson,  Ellen,  294. 
Gulf  Stream,  11,  162. 
Gulsvik,  157. 
Gunhild,  33. 
Gustav,  Prince    of    Denmark, 

73. 
Guthorm  Sigurdsson,  48. 

H 

Haakon,  Earl,  33-34. 
Haakon   Haakonsson,  49,  228, 

236,  238. 

Haakon  Sigurdsson,  45. 
Haakon  Sverresson,  48. 
Haakon  the  Broad-Shoulders. 

See  Haakon  Sigurdsson. 
Haakon  the  Good,  31-33,  119. 
Haakon    the    Long-Legs,    51, 

229. 

Haakon  VII  73-74. 
"  Haakon  VII."  steamer,  159. 
Haakon's  Hall,  236,  244. 
Hseg,  213. 

Hale,  William  Barton,  xi. 
Halfdan  the  Swarthy,  30. 
Halfdan  the  White-Leg,  29. 
Hallingdal,  205,  208,  255,  312. 
Hallings,  279. 
Halvorsen,  Johan,  295. 
Hamar,  61,  98,  156,  181,  227, 

306. 


Index 


323 


Hamburg,  226. 
Hammerfest,  8,  106,  140. 
Handicrafts,  137,  185,  236. 
Hanko,  255. 
Hanseatic  league,  50,  58,  59, 

237-241,  247,  262. 
Hanslick,  Eduard,  292. 
Harald  Gille,  43,  236. 
Harald  Greyfell,  32-33. 
Harald  Gronske,  222. 
Harald,    Prince  of    Denmark, 

73. 
Harald   the    Fair-Haired,    28, 

30,  31,  222. 
Harald    the    Hard-Ruler,    40, 

247. 

Hardanger  fjeld,  3. 
Hardanger  fjord,  7,  186,  193- 

195,  299,  300,  312. 
Hauge,  Hans  Nielsen,  126-127. 
Haugefos,  302. 
Haugianere,  126-127,  298. 
Haugland,  Baard,  91. 
Haukelfjeld,   154,  207. 
Haymaking,  165-166. 
Head-dresses,  194. 
Heathenism,  115. 
Hebrews,  93,  115,  126. 
Hebrides  islands,  22,  30,  42,  58, 

227 
"Hed'da   Gabler "   by    Ibsen, 

272 

Keen,' 215. 

Heilberg,  Gunnar,  276. 
Heimdall,  120. 
Hekla,  eruption  of,  52. 
Hell,  157. 
Hellesyet,  200. 
Hennum,  Johan,  295. 
Hepaticas,  15. 
Hereditary  aristocracy,  90. 
Herjedalen,  61. 
Hero-worship,  122. 
Herring,  183. 

Hervey,    Hetta    M.,    bibliog- 
raphy, 314. 
Heyerdahl,  Hans,  301. 


Highways,  151-154,    201,   209- 

211,  311. 
Hill-sliding,  258. 
History  of  Norway,  16-86. 
Hitterdal,  307. 
Hitterdal  lake,  159. 
Hielm.     See   Winter-Hjelm. 
Hladir,  122. 
Holberg,    Ludvig,    244,    263, 

292 

Holen,  227. 
Holidays,  101,  126. 
Holland,  240. 
Holmboe,  Thorolf,  304. 
Holmenkollen,  256,  303. 
Holter,  Ivar,  295. 
Holstein,  57,  59. 
Holy  Land,  44,  49. 
Holy  Roman  Empire,  28. 
Honesty,  92. 
Honeysuckle,  15. 
Horgheim,  217. 
Horses,  153-154,  167. 
Horten,  137. 
Horticulture,  165. 
Hotels,  311. 
Houses,  167,  209. 
Hungary,  99. 
Husum,  212. 
Hvalo,  8. 


Ibsen,  Henrik,  journalistic  la- 
bours, 140;  as  a  reformer, 
268;  his  art,  269;  "Brand," 
270;  "Peer  Gynt,"  271; 
psychological  problems,  272 ; 
critical  estimate,  273 ;  Grieg's 
music  and  Ibsen,  293;  por- 
trait by  Werenskiold,  302; 
statue  by  Sinding,  305. 

Ice-field,   155,   198.     See  also 
Glaciers. 

Iceland,  30,  122,  227. 

Icelanders,  87. 

Ice-pegging,  258. 

Ildhaus,  167. 


324 


Index 


Illegitimacy,  95. 
Imports,  187. 
Incest,  78,  95. 
Income  tax,  82. 
Indus  river,  218. 
Industrial  arts,  18,  243. 
Industries,  185-187. 
Infanticide,  95. 
Inge  Baardsson,  49. 
Ingjold,  29. 
Insurance,  102. 
Intelligence  party,  142. 
Iowa,  173. 

"  Irma  "  steamer,  159. 
Ireland,  22,  30,  42,  99. 
Iron,  186. 
Iron  age,  18. 
Islands,  7-9,  157. 
Italy,  30,  31,  297. 


Jacobsen,  Carl  Ludwig,  250. 
Janson,  Kristofer,  274. 
James  I,  King     of     England, 

247. 
James  III,  King  of  Scotland, 

58. 

Jan  Mayen,  184. 
Jemtland,  61. 
Jesuits,  126. 
Jews.    See  Hebrews. 
Jordalsnut,  210. 
Jorgensen,  Svend,  303. 
Jostedal,  5. 

Jostedalsbrae,  5, 198.  297. 
Jotunheim,  2,  117,  199,  215. 
Jotuns,  203. 

Journals.      See  Newspapers. 
Judiciary,  78. 
Jungman,  Nico,  bibliography, 

314. 

K 

Kaldafjeld,  210. 
Kalmar  union,   49,   55-56,   58, 
260. 


Karelians,  58. 
Karlstad,  72. 

Keary,  Charles  Francis,  bibli- 
ography, 314. 
Khalsi,  218. 
Kiel,  treaty  of,  65. 
Kielland,  Alexander,  273,  276. 
Kilefos,  210. 

Kindness  to  animals,  153. 
Kingsley,  Charles,  165. 
Kittiwake,  14. 
Kjendalsbrce,  198. 
Kjerulf,  Halfdan,  283. 
Kjolen  mountains,  2. 
Knudsen,  K.,  147. 
Knutzen,  Martin,  294. 
Kongsberg,  61,  98,  186,  248. 
Kragero,  302. 
Krohg,  Christian,  302. 
Krone,  85,  312. 
Kullak,  Theodore,  285. 
Kvalo,  8. 


Labour  laws,  101. 

Labrofos,  297. 

Ladak,  218. 

Lsera  river,  212. 

Lserdalsoren,  12,  154,  212. 

Lagthing,  76. 

Lakes,  198,  204,  215,  216. 

Landed  property,  164. 

Landsmaal,  144. 

Landstorm,  80. 

Landvern,  80. 

Land-tenure,  30. 

Langeleik,  280. 

Langfjeld,  2,  3,  178,  205, 

Language,  144,  260. 

Lapland,  12,  107. 

Lapps,  Danish  extortion  of, 
63 ;  pasture  rights,  71 ;  eth- 
nic stock,  108;  manner  of 
dress,  109;  groups,  110; 
occupations,  111;  summer 
pastures,  214;  use  of  the 
ski,  25?. 


Index 


325 


Larkspur,  15. 

Latin  races,  92. 

Laws  of  Norway,  77. 

Leather,  186. 

Leif,  son  of  Eric  the  Red,  36 

Leipzig,  287. 

Lemmings,  13. 

Lemstrom,  107. 

Leprosy,  98,  246. 

Lesjkogen  lake,  216. 

Libraries,  139. 

Lie,  Jonas,  144,  273-275. 

Lillehammer,  156. 

Lindesnses,  11,  68. 

Lindmann,  L.  M.,  280. 

"  Liquor  plague,"  251. 

Liquor  traffic,  83,  250. 

Liszt,  Franz,  282,  285,  293. 

Literacy,  131. 

Literature,  260-277. 

Loan  funds,  174. 

Locks,  160. 

Loen,  133,  172,  198,  313. 

Loendal,  198. 

Loenvand,  198. 

Lofoten   islands,   7,   8-9,    182, 

203,  301. 
Log-floating,  180. 
Loire  river,  21. 
Loke,  120. 
London,  237. 
Lorn,  154. 
Lotefos,  195. 

Louis  IX,  King  of  France,  49. 
Loveid,  160. 
Lubeck,  238. 
Lur,  280. 

Luther,  Martin,  59,   115,  124. 
Lutheran     religion,     124-130, 

131,  263. 
Lungstuen,  8. 
Lynx,  12. 

M 

MacDowell,  Edward,  291,  293. 
Mackerel,  183. 


MacFall,  Haldane,  269. 
Magero,  7,  106. 
Magnus  Ericsson,  51,  239. 
Magnus  Erlingsson,  45. 
Magnus  Olafsson,  39. 
Magnus  the  Bare-Leg,  41. 
Magnus  the  Blind,  43. 
Magnus  the  Good,  39. 
Magnus  the  Law-Mender,  49- 

50,  235. 
Magpies,  13. 
Malt,  83. 

Man,  Isle  of,  50,  237. 
Margaret  of  Denmark,  54,  56. 
Margaret  of  Scotland,  50. 
Margerine,  188. 
Marine  algae,  7. 
Maristuen,  214. 
Marok,  199,  201. 
Massachusetts,  37. 
Maud,  Queen  of  Norway,  74. 
Mauranger,  6. 

Maxwell,  Herbert,  quoted,  218. 
Meadows,  163. 
Mediterranean  sea,  242. 
Methodists,  116,  126. 
Meyer,  Johan,  307. 
Michelsen,  Hans,  305. 
Midgard,  117. 
Midnight  sun,  9,  105. 
Midwives,  97. 
Military  training,  79. 
Milk,  167,  188. 
Mineral  products,  186-187. 
Minnesota,  173, 
Mjosen  lake,  156. 
Modum,  302. 
Moe,  Jorgen,  91,  147. 
Mohammedans,  93. 
Molde,  202,  305. 
Molde  fjord,  202-203. 
Moliere,  263. 
Monasteries,  232,  235. 
Monetary  system,  85,  312, 
Mongolian  race,  109. 
Moraines,  7. 
Mortenson,  Ivar,  274 


326 


Index 


Mortgages,  175. 
Mosquitos,  214. 
Moss,  248. 

Mountain  dairy.    See  Sseter. 
Mountain  Lapps,  110. 
Mountain  ranges,  2. 
Mountain  valleys,  205-219. 
Mozart,  Wolfgang,  287. 
Miiller,  Morten,  299. 
Municipal  taxes,  85. 
Munk,  Edvard,  47,   143,  302. 
Munkholm,  232. 
Munthe,  Gerhard,  303. 
Munthe,  Ludwig,  300. 
Murdog,  King  of  Ireland,  42. 
Music,  278-295. 
Musical  festivals,  294. 
Musical  instruments,  280. 
Musical  unions,  295. 
Mythology,  116,  300. 

N 

NserSdal,  197,  210-212. 

Nsero  fjord,   12,   47,    196-197, 

210. 

Names  of  people,  172. 
Nannestad,  140. 
Nansen,  Fridtjof,  71,  138,  140, 

274,  302. 

Napoleon  Bonaparte,  64,  65. 
Narvik,  157. 
National  debt,  84. 
National  gallery,  249. 
National  museum,  255. 
National  parliament,  75-76. 
Naturalism  in  art,  201. 
Navy,  81. 
Naze,  2. 
Netherlands,    189.      See    also 

Holland. 

Neupert,  Edvard,  294. 
Neupert,  Karl  F.  E.,  284. 
Newfoundland,  242. 
New-Norwegian,  147. 
Newspapers,  139-145. 


Nicholas  II,  Czar  of  Russia,  73. 

Nielsen,  Amaldus,  300. 

Niffleheim,  117. 

Nilsen,  Sivert,  91. 

Njord,  120. 

Norangsdal,  201. 

Norangs   fjord,  197-199,  201. 

Nord  fjord,  3,  13. 

Nordland,  178,  181,  186,  240, 
263. 

Nordland  boat,  184. 

Nordraak,  Richard,  283. 

Nordsjo  lake,  160. 

Normandy,  19,  20. 

Norse  gods,  118-122. 

Norse  letters,  260-277. 

North  America,  274.  See  also 
United  States. 

North  Cape,  8,  10,  68,  105-106, 
157,  232. 

Northern  lights,  See  Aurora 
borealis. 

North  Pole,  106. 

North  sea,  21,  242. 

Northumberland,  22. 

Norway,  geography,  1-15;  his- 
tory, 16-86;  people,  87-114; 
religions,  115-130;  educa- 
tion, 131-150;  -highways, 
151-155;  railways,  155-158; 
waterways,  158-162;  agri- 
culture, 163-177;  forests, 
178-181;  fisheries,  181-185; 
commerce,  185-189;  fjords, 
190-204 ;  mountains,  205- 
219;  chief  cities,  220-259; 
literature,  260-277 ;  music, 
278-295;  art,  296-308. 

Norwegians,  origin,  87;  phys- 
ical type,  88;  mental  traits, 
89;  habits,  90;  humble  life, 
91;  humane  instinct,  92; 
travel  interests,  93;  do- 
mestic habits,  94 ;  sexual  mo- 
rality, 95;  industry,  96; 
sanitation,  97:  emigration, 
99. 


Index 


327 


"  Nose  tax,"  30. 
Novaya  Zembla,  184. 
Novgorod,  237. 
Numedal,  205,  307. 
Nymegan,  22. 
Nystuen,  214. 

O 

Oats,  164. 
Occupations,  172. 
Odde,  6,  154,  194,  207. 
Odelsthing,  76. 

Odin,  19,  20,  36,  117,  118-119, 
280. 

Bfoten,  157. 
ie,  201. 
Olaf    Haraldsson.      See    Olaf 

the  Saint. 

Olaf  Magnusson,  42. 
Olaf,  Prince  of  Norway,  74. 
Olaf  the  Quiet,  41,  235,  250. 
Olaf  the  Saint,  38-39,  45,  120, 

122,  221-226,  231. 
Olaf  the  Thick-Set.     See  Olaf 

the  Saint. 
Olaf  Trygvesson,   34-35,    122, 

221. 

Olaf  the  Young,  52. 
Olden  vand,  198. 
Olsen,  Ole,  295. 
Oratorios,  285. 
Oratunturi,    Mount,    107. 
^rchids,  15. 
Ore,  85,  312. 
Orkney  islands,  22,  30,  42,  44, 

49,  58,  227. 
Ormeim,  217. 
Oscar  I,  67-68. 
Oscar  II,  68-69,  70, 106, 171. 
Oscarsborg,  81. 
Oscarshall,   255,  298. 
Oseberg  ship,  23,  26-27,  304. 
Oselio  -  Bjornson,       Ingeborg, 

294. 

Oslo.     See  Christiania. 
Ospreys,  13. 


Osterdal,  88. 
Otta,  156. 
Otteraa  river,  206. 
Out-kitchens,  168. 


Paderewski,  Ignace,  293. 

Painting,  296-304. 

Paganism,  36. 

Paper  manufacture,  179. 

Paris,  21. 

Pauperism,  95-96. 

Pears,  Io5. 

Peasants,  91,  142,  173. 

Pedersson,  Gjeble,  60. 

"  Peer  Gynt  "  by  Ibsen,  269- 
272. 

Pension  funds,  102. 

People.  See  Lapps  and  Nor- 
wegians. 

People's  high  schools,  134. 

Peterssen,  Elif,  301. 

Phallic  worship,  122. 

Philip  III,  King  of  France, 
235. 

Physicians,  96. 

Pine  trees,  181. 

Plant  life,  14-15. 

Plastic   arts.     See   Sculpture. 

Plover,  13. 

Polar  regions,  104-114. 

Pope  Adrian  IV,  227. 

Pope  Alexander  IV,  49. 

Pope  Eugene  III,  226. 

Population  of  Norway,  98. 

Porphyry,  187. 

Porsanger  fjord,  203. 

Porsgrund,  137,  189. 

Posting  system,   152,   157. 

Postal  service,  160. 

Poverty,  95. 

Press.    See  Newspapers. 

Press  censorship,  140. 

Prisons,  78. 

Profanity,  95. 

Prostitution,  95. 


328 


Index 


Protectionist  movement,  83. 

Protestant  reformation,  59, 
124-125,  131,  231,  263,  306. 

Protestant  religion,  60. 

Prydz,  Alvide,  273. 

Ptarmigan,  13. 

Public  libraries.  See  Libra- 
ries. 

Puffin,  14. 

Punishments,  77. 

Puritanism,  63. 


Q 


Quakers,  116. 
Quarries,  186. 

R 

Railroads.    See  Railways. 
Railways,  82,     155-157,     208- 

209.  214,  312. 
Rainfall,    11-12,  105,  235. 
Rape,  78,  95. 
Raspberries,  15,  165. 
Rauma  river,  216. 
Reformation.     See  Protestant 

reformation. 

Reindeer,  12,  110-114,  214,  312. 
Reinlid,  307. 
Reissiger,  F.  A.,  295. 
Religions  in  Norway,  115-130. 
Revenues,  81. 

Reviews.    See  Newspapers. 
Rhine  river,  20. 
Road-building,  154. 
Roads.    See  Highways. 
Rock  drawings,  17. 
Rodal,  11,  154,  207. 
Rodents,  13. 
Rollo,  20. 
Roman  Catholic  religion,   60, 

116,  125. 
Rome,  44,  222. 
Romsdal,   182,  203,  206,  216- 

218,  312. 
Romsdalshorn,  218. 


Root  plants,  165. 

Roros,  61,  186. 

Rosenkranz  tower,  244. 

"  Rosmersholm "     by     Ibsen, 

272. 

Rouen,  21. 
Runic  inscriptions,  18,  27,  118, 

213. 

Rural  schools,  133. 
Russia,  28,  34,  35,  63,  65,  183, 

189. 

Russians,  57. 
Ruskin,  John,  192. 
Rye,  164,  188. 


S 


Sacrifices,  123. 
Sa;ter,  167,  169-171. 
S^tersdal,  206-207,  299. 
Sagas,  29,  40,  244. 
St.  Petersburg,  247. 
Salmon,  183. 
Samoyedes,  108. 
Sandefjord,  23. 
Sanitation,  97. 
Sars,  Ernst,  19. 
Savings  banks,  85. 
Saw-mills,  180,  186. 
Saxifrage,  15. 
Scalds,  40,  119,    223,    262. 
School  boards,  132. 
School  districts,  132. 
School  studies,  133. 
Schools.     See  Education. 
Schubert,  Franz,  291.  293. 
Schumann,  Robert,  293. 
Schwergaard,  A.  ML,  143. 
Scotland,  22,  35,  50. 
Sculpture,  304-308. 
Sea-birds,  13-14,  161. 
Seals,  184. 
Sea-Lapps,  110. 
Secondary  schools,  135. 
Seiland,  8. 
Seine  river,  21. 
Seljestad,  207. 


Index 


329 


Selmer,  Johan,  284,  295. 

"  Seven     Sisters "     waterfall, 

199. 

'Sexual  morality,  95. 
Sharks,  184. 

Shetland  islands,  30,  50,  227. 
Ship-building,  186. 
Siberia,  104. 
Sicily,  19. 
Sick-clubs,  102. 
Sidon,  42. 
Sigurd  Mund,  236. 
Sigurd  the  Bad-Priest,  44. 
Sigurd  the  Crusader,  42. 
Silver,  61,  186,  248. 
Simeon  of  Durham,  quoted,  22. 
Binding,  Christian,  284. 
Binding,  Otto,  245,  300. 
Sinding,    Stephen,    245,    250, 

305 

Sivlefos,  210. 
Skaala  mountain,  198. 
Skaalholt,  227. 
Skaggeflaa,  200. 
Skagen,  302. 
Skalds.    See  Scalds. 
Skarsfos,  195. 

Skeibrok,  Matthias,  91,  305. 
Ski,  185,  257. 
Ski-jumping,  256. 
Ski-sailing,  257. 
Skien,  160,  189,  207. 
Skien-Nordsjo-Bandak     canal, 

159,  207. 
Skjsergaard,  157. 
Skogstad,  214. 
Skram,  Amalie,  274. 
Skredsvig,  Christian,  91,  203. 
Skellerud  lake,  159. 
Sledges,  152. 
Sleswick,  21,  56,  57. 
Slettafos,  217. 
Slogen,  201. 
Smaalenen,  23. 
Smolensk,  257. 
Snorre  Sturlasson,  32,  222. 
Snow-plough,  155. 


Snow-shoe.    See  Ski. 

Soapstone,  186. 

Sogne  fjord,  6,  7,  12,  195-197, 
212,  307. 

Soot,  Eyolf,  303. 

Sor  fjord,  195. 

Soro,  8. 

Sorum,  212,  215. 

Spirillen  lake,  215. 

Spitzbergen,  13,  184. 

Sports,  256,  312. 

Spree  river,  294. 

Springfield,  Mass.,  xi,  294. 

Spruce  trees,  179,  181. 

Stature  of  the  Norwegians,  88. 

Stav-churches,  See  Timber 
churches. 

Stavanger,  7,  9,  98,  157,  183, 
189,  227,  306,  310. 

Stalheim,  92,  154,  210. 

Stalheimsfos,  210. 

Stanford  Bridge,  40. 

Steamboats,  158. 

Steamer  yacht  "  Haakon  VII," 
159. 

Steganasse,  197. 

Stimson,  George  W.,  xi. 

Stabur,  167. 

Stockholm,  156,  233. 

Stolkjaerre,  152,  207. 

Stone,  186. 

Stone  age,  16-17. 

Stone,  Olivia  M.,  quoted,  210, 
216;  bibliography,  315. 

Store-house,  168. 

Stor  fjord,  199. 

Storm,    Halfdan,  303. 

Storthing.  See  National  Par- 
liament. 

Strande  fiord,  215. 

Strauss,  Richard,  293. 

Strawberries,  15. 

Stryndal,  198. 

Stryns  vand,  198. 

Stufloten,  216. 

Styve,  197. 

Sugar,  188. 


330 


Index 


Suldals  vand,  207. 
Sulitelma,  2. 
Sunday  worship,  129. 
Sunnan,  157. 
Suppehelle  glacier,  5. 
Summer  light,  9. 
Sve.nd  Alfifasson,  39. 
Svend  Haakonsson,  36,'38, 221. 
Svendsen,  Johan  S.,  91,   284, 

287,  295. 

Svenssen,  Olaf,  294. 
Sverre  Sigurdsson,  46. 
Sweden,  1,  34,  51,  56,  62,  67, 

70,  131,  141,  183,  189. 
Swedes,  87,  247. 
Swedish  language,  147. 
Swiss,  93. 

Switzerland,  79,  160,  297. 
Syenite,  187. 
Symphonies,  284,  295. 


Tandberg,  G.,  quoted,  176. 

Tariff  rates,  83. 

Tauranian  race,  108. 

Taxes,  82. 

Taylor,  Bayard,  quoted,   107, 

192;    bibliography,  315. 
Technical  education,   137-139. 
Teachers,  133-134. 
Telegraph  service,  68,  84,  160, 

312 
Telemarken,  156, 186,  195,  205, 

207-208,  255,  280,  297,  299, 

302,  307. 

Telephone  service,  160,  312. 
Temples,   122,  306.     See  also 

Cathedrals. 
Teutonic  race,  87,  94. 
Thaulow,  Fritz,  245,  302. 
Thellefsen,  Thomas,  284,  294. 
Thiis,  Jens,  298,  302. 
Thirty  Years'  War,  61,  241. 
Thommessen,  O.,  91. 
Thor,  19,  20,  36,  38,  119-120, 

280. 


Thoreau,  Henry  D.,  200. 

Thoresen,  Magdelena,  274. 

Thrift,  174. 

Thune,  23. 

Tidemand,  245,  255,  298. 

Timber,  180-181. 

Timber  churches,  255,  306. 

Tobacco,  188. 

Tobacco-chewing,  94. 

Tobogganing,  258. 

Tordenskjold,  P.,  305. 

Tonsassen,  11. 

Tonsberg,  81. 

Touring  Club  de  France,  31* 

Tourist  bureaus,  309. 

Tours  (France),  21. 

Trade.     See  Commerce. 

Trade  guilds,  235. 

Tramps,  96. 

Trees.    See  Forestry. 

Trold  fjord,  203. 

Troldtinder,  203,  218. 

Trold  vand,  203. 

Tromso,  8,  10,  98,  178,  181, 
182. 

Trondhjem,  captured  by  the 
Swedes,  61 ;  foundation  of 
Academy  of  Science,  63; 
prisons,  78;  midnight  sun 
106;  technical  schools,  137; 
Philosophical  Society,  138; 
newspapers,  140;  railways, 
156;  forests,  178;  fisheries, 
183;  commerce,  189;  loca- 
tion, 220;  residence  of  Olaf 
the  Saint,  222;  cathedral, 
226;  headquarters  of  the 
archbishop,  227;  fires,  230; 
Protestant  reformation,  231; 
streets,  232;  tourist  bu- 
reaus, 310. 

Trondhjem  fjord,  2,  17,  29,  98, 
203. 

Tuberculosis,  98. 

Tunnels,  155. 

Tvedt,  Jens,  261. 

Tvinde,  209. 


Index 


331 


Ty,  the  Norse  god,  120. 
Tyler,  Katherine  M.,  bibliog- 
graphy,  315. 

U 

Ulfsten,  Nicolai,  303. 
Undset,  Ingvald,  25. 
Unitarianism,  294. 
United  States,  78,  88,  92,  97, 

135,  160,  166,  173,  176,  189, 

237.     See  also  America  and 

North  America. 
Universal   suffrage,  136,  253. 
University  of  Christiania,  64, 

135-137,  305. 


Vsermofos,  217. 

Vagrancy,  96. 

Valdemar,  Duke,  57. 

Valders,  11,  52,  157,  187,  206, 
208,  212-217,  307. 

Valhalla,  117,  118. 

Valkyries,  118. 

Valleys.  See  Mountain  val- 
leys. 

Vand.    See  Lakes. 

Vanirs,  202. 

Varno,  8. 

Ve,  117. 

Veblungsnses,  202,  217. 

Vegetables,  165,  171. 

Vengetinder,  218. 

Venice,  237. 

Veranger  fjord,  2,  203. 

Vesteraadal,  202. 

Vest  fjord,  8,  203. 

Vestfold,  29. 

Videdal,  198. 

Vik,  307. 

Viken,  62. 

Viking  age,  viii,  16-27,  196. 

Viking-ships,  23-27,  304. 

Vikings,  223. 


Vili,  117. 

Vincent,    Frank,    quoted,   94; 

bibliography,  315. 
Vineland,  37-38. 
Vinje,  Aasmund,  91. 
Violin,  280,  284. 
Visnaes,  198. 
Voringsfos,  195. 
Vossevangen,  11,  92,  181,  187, 

208,  209,  307. 
Vrangfos,  160,  207. 

W 

Wagner,  Richard,  293. 

Wagons,  152.  See  also  Car- 
rioles and  Stolkjserre. 

Wagtails,  13. 

Walking  tours,  311. 

Waterfalls,  160,  191,  194,  199- 
200,  210,  217. 

Water  traffic,  157. 

Welhaven,  Johan,  143,  245, 
264. 

Wentzel,  Gustav,  303. 

Weber,  Karl,  287. 

Werenskiold,  Erik,  302. 

Wergeland,  Henrik,  142,  147, 
193,  249,  365. 

Whales,  184. 

Whortelberry,  15. 

William  II,  Emperor  of  Ger- 
many, 106. 

William  of  Orange,  47. 

Winge,  Per,  245. 

Winter  darkness,  10. 

Winter-Hjelm,  Otto,  284. 

Winter  sports,  256-259,  310. 

Wisconsin,  173. 

Women,  101,  109,  136,  165, 
198,  206. 

Women's  suffrage.  See  Uni- 
versal suffrage. 

Wood-carving,   172,  304. 

Woodlands,  178. 

Wood-pulp,  188. 


332 


Index 


Wood,  Charles  M.,  bibliog- 
raphy, 315. 

Worcester,  Mass.,  294. 

Work-houses,  96. 

Wotans,  119. 

Wyllie,  M.  A.,  bibliography, 
315. 


Yellow-hammers,  13. 
Ymir,  116,  117. 
Yosemite  Valley,  218. 
York,  237. 


f  .,    A     A 

A    000116223     9 


